Sweeter Than Sugar
by RamenStarr
Summary: "Yeah, I'm sweet alright. Sweet enough to just rot your teeth, Moon." A pause, before I answered, "What were you planning on putting in my mouth to rot my teeth, sweetheart?" My large ears picked up a quiet huff and I called out, "Hey now, don't leave, Ash! You've got me all excited!" A Buster x Ash fic that nobody wanted. It's M for language, nudity, eventual animal smut. Sorry.
1. Part 1

**So I just watched Sing, and I loved it. I also love finding crack ships so here we are. This is kinda just a side project that's been used as warm up writing before I work on my other stuff, but I'm still trying to stay invested.**

 **So this started as just the whole movie and my own little things here and there as a oneshot, but it's getting really long, so I might break it down into chapters, I don't know yet.**

 **So, I'm making everyone here have more humanoid features, so they're still animals proportionate to their size, but women have boob's and curves, and males have a more cut body, and muscles are going to be defined.**

 **Also, for the past that I made up for Buster, it may or may not have been inspired by his voice actor and a certain movie called Magic Mike...**

 **I'm just having fun and no one's done it yet, so here we are. It's going to be in Buster's POV, mostly because I need practice on writing an adult male's mindset. Sorry if his way of thinking or actions come off as creepy or weird, it's not on purpose.**

 **Enjoy the Buster x Ash crack down below.**

 **Hope you like it. Also, sorry if I ruined a fun family movie for some people, but it's been fun to write.**

 **Last thing, this will make way more sense if you've already seen the movie.**

 **Now, time for the Buster x Ash fic that nobody wanted.**

 **999**

I couldn't help but dance a little in my seat as Miss Crawly and I judged the contestants. I caught the old lizard looking at me out of the corner of my eye and turned to give her a nod and a grin. She smiled back and began writing down something on her clipboard concerning the group of shrimp currently singing. Their song was pretty catchy!

A handful of animals auditioned before we got another singer that stood out. A pig wearing a sparkly gold outfit was singing one of my favorite songs to sing along to. My mouth had dropped open in surprise when the male on stage started singing, but a corner of my mouth slowly turned upward at the sound of his accented voice and his amazing energy. This one was a definite maybe.

A few acts later there was another group that caught my eye with the great harmony in their singing _and_ dancing. Adding them to the 'maybe' list in the group act section.

Where we have good ones, we have bad ones, though. There was a group of small, red panda children singing along with a jukebox and just jumping around with the energy only little kids could have. I couldn't help but look in disbelief as Miss Crawly actually _enjoyed_ the craziness on stage. Nope, not gonna have _that_ one in my show.

It got better after that, but only a little. We had some more group acts come on, including a group of cute rabbits. I couldn't help but smile at their act, I was a male after all, but I wouldn't be using them for the show.

The next act took about ten minutes to set up the amps for their performance. While we waited, I observed the porcupine duo as they got out their guitars and hooked them up. They were signed up as Lance and Ash. They looked to be young adults, possibly teenagers. By the way they dressed, I guessed they were punk rockers. Both the male and the female had some of their quills needled through the front of their shirts, and I couldn't help but wonder if that was a rocker thing or just a porcupine fad.

The girl walked up to the mic first and tapped it gently to do a mic test, and I couldn't help but raise my brows at the sound of her voice. It had a raspy, smokey tone to it that immediately had me interested. I was excited to hear her sing.

I was broken out of my trance when the male walked up to test his mic and addressed Miss Crawly and I.

"Alright, uh, so we're going to be singing ' _I Don't Wanna'_ for you guys, so be prepared to be totally blown away!" He said with such confidence that I could only hope he could back it up with talent.

Before I could even tell them to begin, the male started strumming while the girl was quick to join.

The sheer volume of their notes was enough to make my fur stand on end.

My large ears were suffering horribly, not only from the volume, but from the male's singing. I desperately tried to hear the girl's voice in the madness, but could only pick up her saying some background "Yeah's, and Hey's!", the lead singer's lyrics were drowning her out.

I flinched back into my seat and brought my clipboard up in front of my face in a weak attempt in shielding myself from the music.

I grimaced as another chorus was coming up. Then, suddenly, like the soothing balm to my hurting eardrums, I finally heard the female's voice with startling clarity. I peeked out from behind my shield and gazed at the scene before me. The girl had taken over, singing a longer verse than she was supposed to by the look on the male's face. What a set of lungs on her!

I smiled. She was for sure in my show.

After that, there was a couple other performances that just weren't cutting it, from rappers to de-tuned guitars and children not quite ready for singing.

The last dozen acts were well worth the cringe worthy singers before them, though. I smiled a tired but giddy grin to myself. It was going to be an excitingly hard choice of who was going to be in my show, and I couldn't wait.

 **999**

I finally stood and stretched my legs as Miss Crawly called the contestants back to the stage for the weeding. I glanced down at my clipboard and read over our notes on who stays and who goes. We had marked the people who would cut it, but it was still too many. I would have to play it by ear and decide last minute. One of my best skills was bullshitting and coming up with solutions last minute so I wasn't too worried.

I stood still in front of the crowd of animals and looked over them all carefully. They were all either incredibly nervous or confident or...bored...in the male porcupine's case. The girl was the only one who looked like she was both excited and scared to be on that stage out of the two of them.

Mentally rolling my eyes, I walked down to one end of the stage to get a better look at them all. "Alright," I started as I reached the end of my trail and abruptly turned around to start my trek back down the way I came. I noticed them all jump back to attention.

"Hmm..." My eyes perused the many faces as I tapped my pen against my clipboard and slowly walked forward. "I'll take..." I arrived back at the middle of the group and glanced at the frog group. "You guys." I pointed my pen at them and continued on, ignoring their cries of joy. I knew who was next.

"Ok, now which one of you is the girl?" I couldn't help but blurt out. It was a stupid joke, since I could very clearly tell who was female, especially up close, with how well the girl was...endowed. Said girl rolled her eyes and opened her mouth to retort, but I quickly cut her off with a small smile and a quick wink. "Easy, just kidding."

She closed her mouth and blinked at me before giving me a deadpan stare. "Ha ha. Funny."

I grinned at how sexy her voice sounded even when being sarcastic. A quick glance at her partner showed that he was still looking bored and barely even paying attention, staring straight ahead instead at myself. I looked back down to my paper and inwardly shook my head at the blatant disrespect. How did he even manage to get any gigs?

"Loud and horrible, but shows promise." I read aloud, a summary of the act as a whole but the last part only about her. I looked back up and met her gaze with one of my most charming smiles.

"Welcome to the show."

She broke eye contact first and looked down at my clipboard in disbelief, like she couldn't believe she was chosen.

As I was walking away I heard the young male chuckle, "Cool. I guess we could hang." Ha.

"No no." I shook my head and continued on without looking back, "I just want her, not you."

A beat of shocked silence, before I heard them both say, "What?!"

I turned and faced the whole crowd again and said, "All right, the rest of the group acts, thank you so much!"

I was met with groans of disappointment and I quickly tried to offer what little comfort I could. My ear automatically cocked back a bit when I heard the male porcupine sputter behind me.

"Hmph, whatever. Let's get out of here, Ash." I quickly turned around to see him roll his eyes and walk away, but my eyes were quickly drawn to the female's wide and conflicted ones. Ash.

She glanced at Lance and then back to me, her eyes widening more when she noticed me watching her. She quickly took a small step back and shifted her gaze to the floor in thought.

Lance finally noticed that he didn't get a reply and turned back to her with an irritated look on his face. "Ash?"

"Uh, yeah..." I raised a single eyebrow in question and silently hoped she would stay. Ditch him, he's dragging you down!

"Yeah, let's go." Her voice went back to confident and sure, but her eyes stayed longing and conflicted. She turned and slowly followed him out, but kept her eyes locked with mine until the very last moment.

I let out a small sigh and went to address the soloists. I couldn't help but feel disappointed, knowing she would shine brightly on my stage if given the chance. I made a mental note to have Miss Crawly leave a space open for Ash just in case she came back.

 **999**

I was in so much shit.

I tried to take deep, even breaths as I escorted a sobbing Miss Crawly out of my office so she could compose herself.

"C'mon, Buster! What do you expect? She's like two hundred years old."

Yes, she was old, but I just couldn't bring myself to even want to let her go. I've known her so long, and she's been there with me since dad gifted me this place. No, I would figure this out. I always did. That reminds me...

"Eddie, please, look." I shut the door and jumped up onto some stacked books so I could look over my desk and see the sheep. "If-if your folks could just loan me the money until-"

"A _hundred thousand dollars?_ Buster, come on!" Eddie chuckled and gave me an incredulous look.

Well, there went that option. Okay, getting harder to keep the panic at bay. I let out an explosive sigh. "I gotta think, I gotta think, I gotta think, I've _got_ to come up with a solution..." I muttered while I paced around my office.

"Look, maybe it's time to _stop_ thinking and it's time to just move on." Eddie tried to reason. "I mean, this theater of yours, you could get some decent money for it and...I don't know, maybe we could do something together!"

"Like _what?!"_ I paused in my mutterings and turned to him with wide, skeptic eyes. "What, sit around playing video games?" I couldn't help but scoff at the mere thought of it. I was _not_ playing video games for a living.

I gave my friend a scowl and pointed up at my shelf. "Do you know what that is?"

"Uh, it's a bucket?"

"Yes, and do you know why I have this bucket?"

Eddie rolled his eyes up at the ceiling. "'Cause the roof is leaking?"

"No, _that's_ the bucket for the leak." I corrected with an exasperated shake of my head. "I have this one 'cause it belonged to my father. Everyday, for thirty years, he worked his tail off washing cars _just_ so I could buy this place." I said while picking up the metal bucket. " _Every day,_ Eddie. Just for me." My voice softened towards the end of my sentence, my heart burning with gratitude even now. I sighed at the thought of possibly losing this place after all that he did for me.

"Wow. Sounds like a great dad..." Eddie paused before continuing, "Wait, weren't you making a lot of money back when you were str-"

I quickly cut him off and set the bucket back on the shelf. "Yes! Yes, I was making a lot of money at my old club, but between all the bills and a few...well, bribes...and my bodyguard there was only so much left to live by. I could have lived there like I do here, but I didn't really feel comfortable about it." I sighed at the memories coming back to me. Some that I tried my best to forget about.

Back when I was younger, when I had turned nineteen, I had moved out of my parents house and found a cheap apartment downtown instead of staying in the campus dorms when I left for college. My father understood that I was ready to spread my wings, and helped me find a job in retail to get me started into the world of adulthood. I also spent every other evening on a street corner playing my acoustic guitar for some extra cash.

One day, on my day off from the local supermarket, I was performing on a rather hot day, and had my shirt off while I played. I was one of the rare few koalas that worked hard on having a muscular figure, a feat that many koalas didn't bother with since we had such fluffy fur that made it hard to see muscular definition. I hadn't been the most ripped animal around, but I knew I looked good for a fuzzy little koala. It helped draw in some of the ladies too, something I had loved, being a teenager and all. I had suddenly been approached by a slick talking fox who asked me if I wanted a job.

I got excited when he told me he was looking for new performers, thinking the man wanted me for my musical skills, especially when I heard how much I would make every night.

Then I found out just what kind of _performing_ I would have to do.

I flat out refused at first, and couldn't believe I hadn't seen the signs on my way into the strip club. The fox, Duke, who had turned out to be the manager, practically begged me to at least go out there and give it a shot, even if I couldn't dance great, being cute and taking my clothes off would be enough. I went out on stage and was immediately met with cooing and laughter. My face shined red through my fur when I heard the hooting laughter coming from the other dancers watching from backstage, _actual_ studs, being a horse, two tiger twins, and a German Shepard. The other new recruit, a young antelope, had looked on at me in pity.

Until I took off my shirt.

The audience of women, animals of all different sizes, suddenly started cheering and leering. The laughing stopped. There was still some cooing, but it was mostly females letting out growls, bays, and howls in approval. I couldn't believe it. I had never been so obviously wanted by so many females, especially females that weren't koalas. It was insane. I loved it.

By the time I made my way backstage again, I was clad only in my purple boxer briefs, money stuffed into my underwear from everywhere possible. My first time on stage had landed me over two hundred dollars in tips, and that wasn't even my paycheck.

None of my family or friends were aware of what I had done for a living through college, and I started taking dancing lessons from the guys at the club, the tigers showing me how to really hook the crowd of ladies. The antelope, Chase, gave me a few dance lessons that didn't require gyrating. I was much appreciative.

My father was none the wiser and still believed that I worked and the supermarket. I felt horrible for lying to him, but it would be worse if he ever found out what I did for a living. The only reason Eddie knew was because some classmates had dragged him there as a joke, letting him believe it was a female strip club, and was almost as shocked as I was when we saw each other. Maybe not as shocked as him, considering I was wearing leather chaps at the time, and didn't notice him sitting in the crowd until I was already grinding in the lap of a blushing poodle.

That was an awkward conversation after hours.

Being a stripper, or, later on, _managing_ other strippers wasn't what I wanted to do, which was why I had set up a savings fund for when I could eventually buy out the theater. Which happened a lot sooner than I thought it would, thanks to my dad.

Anyway.

"I _did_ have some in savings, what I had left after paying off my student loans anyway. Had I known my dad was working to buy the theater, I would of saved a _lot_ more or actually did some more dances before I retired. I spent all of my savings keeping this place open and on repairs. Also some on making my own personal living space here in the office..."

"So, wait, when did you have a _bodyguard?_ And why didn't you tell me?! What if I had come to visit you one weekend and decided to surprise you only for your bodyguard to kick my ass!" The sheep exclaimed indignantly.

I rolled my eyes. "Please, what am I, an Idiot? I showed him a picture of us and told him that you were my friend, Victor wouldn't have hurt you."

Eddie scoffed, "Okay, we'll talk about that later. How are you going to handle your current problem?"

As if on cue, my office phone let out a beep, and Miss Crawly's voice was suddenly sounding through the room. "Mr. Moon, I got Judith from the back holding on line two again..."

I sighed. "Well, there's only one thing I _can_ do..."

 **999**

Later that evening, I was still writing up plans and ideas for rehearsals tomorrow evening when Miss Crawly walked into my office holding a dark red piece of paper and my late night tea.

"Here you go, Mr. Moon." I gratefully took the cup and from her frail, shaking hands and hoped to God that she didn't drop it on his desk again.

"Ah, thank you." A gave her a tired smile in thanks and was about to say good night when I took notice of the slightly crinkled flyer in her hands. "What's that?"

"Oh!" The old lady blinked her one working eye at the paper and handed it to me. "That loud porcupine duo left that with me when they signed up for auditions."

I was lazily perusing the flyer before my eyes shot open and alert at that. I quickly skimmed the page until I found their contact information. Not quite believing my luck, they had left a phone number to call. I distantly heard Miss Crawly bidding me goodnight, and I distractedly replied while looking for my cellphone.

I flicked some papers and found it hiding underneath. I swiped a finger across the screen and quickly dialed the numbers and held my phone up to my ear, hoping it was Ash that picked up.

After three four rings it was finally answered. "Hello?"

Ugh. That bored, droning voice.

I cleared my throat before saying, "Hello, may I speak to Ash, please?"

There was a pause. "Who's asking for her?" Lance asked in a slightly suspicious voice.

I took a moment to think over my answer. If I wasn't careful here, the other male might not even let Ash on the phone to talk to me if I didn't let both of them in the show. Yeah, there was no way in hell I was letting Lance in. "Ah, I was just wanting to finish our conversation about a chance performance on my stage. She had to leave rather abruptly before we could finalize the deal." Well, it wasn't exactly a lie.

"Ah, I gotcha dude! That was probably before that singing competition we went to check out. Don't worry though, it was lame, we'll be free to play for you!" _You_ won't be, thank you. "I'll go get my girlfriend so you guys can hash this out."

I heard him call for Ash and I let out a sigh in relief. With a _girlfriend_ like that, I figured he'd be a little more cautious about other males calling around for her. Especially since it was _Ash._

I took a deep breath when I heard her faintly talking in the background before her voice was speaking directly into my ear. "Hello?"

I took a second to soak in her voice before answering, "Hi there! This is Buster Moon. I was hoping to talk to you about your performance."

Ash let out a surprised sound. "Moon?! Um...look, there's no way I can be in the show without Lance, I'm just the back up vocals-"

" _Back up vocals?"_ I interrupted incredulously. "Ash, you are amazing! With a voice like that, you should be the lead!"

"...Really?" The female porcupine asked dubiously. Was she serious?

"Yes! I don't lie about talent, young lady. I would _really_ like to be able to work with you and have you in my show."

"Oh, I don't know...I mean, I really want to! But Lance would never let me-"

I couldn't help but cut her off again. "It's not up to _Lance,_ it's up to you. It's _your_ future career. You might be coming in by yourself, but think about the 100 grand!"

I felt bad for lying to her, but I just _had_ to get her here. I sighed. "Look, just think of all you and...Lance...could do with that money if you win it. That alone should be enough of a reason for him to let you do this." And if he doesn't, dump him, I silently added.

I heard her sigh on her end before saying, "Alright, Mr. Moon. I'll talk to him about it. No promises, though."

I let a big smile spread across my face at that. Yes! "Thank you, Ash! I hope to see you tomorrow morning!"

This time I could practically hear the smile in her voice as she said, "Yeah, hopefully. Thank you."

"You're welcome."

 **999**

"This contest is war."

It was the next morning, and I was facing my new group of performers bright and early. All had showed up, except a certain porcupine.

"This stage is the battlefield. Your song is your weapon. Now you only get one shot to blow that audience away, so select carefully from the list of songs I've selected for each of you."

I paused in my pacing when my large ears heard running footsteps and I turned to see Ash just stepping into line at the end. My eyes lit up at the sight and I immediately walked over towards her.

"Ah, talked some sense into that boyfriend of yours?" I said with a grin and licked the tip of my finger to flick through my papers for her song list.

I heard her scoff and glanced up quickly to see her roll her eyes. "Lance is an artist, but I wouldn't expect _you_ to understand that."

She raised a challenging eyebrow and gave me a smirk. I just smiled back. It was endearing and a little sad that she felt like she had to defend her boyfriend, but if she thought I was going to give the usual reaction to sass, she was wrong.

"You're right." I chuckled a bit and held out her list. "I don't understand that at all." Lance? An _artist?_

I shrugged at her and couldn't help but smirk a little at her gobsmacked look and gently handed her the page before moving on.

"Now," I raised my voice to address everyone once again, "you'll notice each list also includes my costume and performance suggestions. Okay? Miss Crawly will show you to your rehearsal spaces. Now, let's get to work!"

I quickly set Johnny up with some piano lessons with Miss Crawly and paused when I heard shouting coming from one of the practice rooms. I resisted the urge to sigh and hurried to where the arguing came from. It was the frog group. I faintly recall them arguing a few minutes ago on stage as well.

"Guys! _Guys!"_ They barely even noticed me, and the sound of foreign pop music immediately distracted me. This time I did sigh in frustration. How did those kids get in here again?!

I walked over to the glass facing them and wagged my finger at them slowly and frowned. They just didn't get that I didn't want them in the show!

The little girl in lead formation looked up at me and slowly imitated my wagging motion before getting the wrong clue. Of course.

I shook my head and left the room altogether. I looked down at my list and decided to head to the costumes and started sorting through those for now. There would be some peace there, hopefully.

I pushed open the door and let it close before I let out an explosive sigh. This was frustrating, and even I was having a hard time being constantly optimistic all the time. I walked forward and tapped my pen to my lips as I gazed at a revealing, bright pink outfit. My lips curled against my pen in a small smile. It was just the right size for a certain porcupine...

Speaking of, "Hey, Moon, you gave me the wrong list."

I glanced behind me for a moment to see her saunter in wearing an outfit similar to yesterday's, with a dark sweater with two of her quills threaded through the material covering her stomach under her perky breasts, and a red plaid skirt over ripped skinny jeans that hugged her form nicely. Her converse shoes scuffed the wooden floorboards slightly as she made her way towards me. I quickly looked back down and made a note about future costumes for her.

"Cheesy pop's not exactly my style." She said with raised eyebrows and held her sheet of paper out in front of her as if it would bite her.

"Style." I repeated with a grin and turned to face her. "I'm glad you brought that up."

She raised her eyebrows at me in confusion and I quickly climbed up onto a case to dig out that cute outfit I saw earlier. I knew without having to look that she was rolling her eyes at me with all the drama only a teenager could muster up with such a simple action.

My smile grew as I grabbed a hold of the hanger and held it out for her to see. She immediately drew back with a noise of disgust. "Isn't this a great color for you?"

I held it out a little further for her and held in a laugh when she inched back from it. Yes, I knew she probably wouldn't go for it, but I couldn't help but tease her.

"I can't tell. It's melting my eyes." This time I got to witness her rolling her pretty blue eyes with feeling. "You got anything in black?" She asked hopefully.

" _Black?"_ I asked incredulously and jumped off the case. "What, you want everyone to think you're going to a funeral?" I walked over to the middle of the clothes rack and searched for a certain dress I saw yesterday. "No no no...bingo! Pop star princess!" I exclaimed excitingly when I finally found what I was looking for and held it out for her to see.

I had time to see her glare at the bright, sparkly dress before there was suddenly a loud clunking sound and darkness.

My smile dropped from my face as I glanced up to the ceiling where the lights _should've_ been on. I heard Ash let out a quiet gasp beside me as the rest of the crew let out their own gasps and questions.

I dropped the dress and reached my hand out to feel for Ash. I could barely see anything, only outlines until my eyes adjusted to the darkness.

"Moon?" I heard her call softly, and I gently grabbed a hold of her arm. Good, she was still right here.

"I'm right here, don't panic, it's okay." I murmured to her, and without thinking, swept my paw down her arm to squeeze hers comfortingly. When she let out another quiet gasp, I realized what the hell I was doing and quickly let go. I cleared my throat awkwardly and started walking towards the other animals.

"Okay, everybody, don't panic! Don't panic."

"What's going on?" Mike demanded.

"Talk to me, Crawly." I turned around and tried to make out who was who from the shapes I could see. That turned out to be a mistake as all I saw was a mass of shadowy spikes that I assumed was Ash following close behind me. That's also when I noticed that the fabric at the end of my suit jacket twisted as I turned, as if something had caught hold of it.

"When did we last pay the power company, Mr. Moon?" I cocked an ear back to my left where I heard the old lady's voice near me. I turned towards the sound of her voice and felt my suit pull backwards a bit. What was I caught on?

I immediately stopped wondering when I felt scaled, wrinkled hands pressing and feeling around my face and I grimaced. Ouch, that was a claw on my nose. At least I found Miss Crawly...

Okay, that claw got a little close to my eye. "Oh, for Pete's sake." I muttered as I gently took her wrists in my hands and pulled them away from my face. "Okay, don't worry, everybody. I _will_ take care of this!" I backed up a bit from Crawly and almost bumped into somebody. I mumbled out a quick apology before continuing, "In the meantime, you will continue to rehearse in the dark!"

"What?" Someone said so close next to me their words were practically in my ear. I couldn't help but jerk my ear away in surprise. That smokey tone...Ash?

I barely recognized her from the fear interlaced with her tone.

"But I can't see anything!" Rosita interjected and derailed my train of thought.

"Don't you worry, Rosita!" Gunter said and the next sound we all heard was unzipping. "I have glowsticks!" He exclaimed happily and cracked one, lighting up the area with a soft, green glow. I saw Rosita, Gunter, and Miss Crawly behind me thanks to the light.

"Great." I stated with my ever present smile in place and turned back to face forward. I was just about to continue when I noticed Ash standing _very_ close to me. I was slightly taken aback with how close her big blue eyes were. I blinked at her questioningly and saw her take in her bottom lip in between her teeth. Then I noticed the tug at my suit again and glanced down to find the cause.

Oh. It was _Ash_ that held the fabric of my suit jacket in her lithe hands. She was now bunching and twisting it in what looked like nervousness. Had she grabbed hold of me since the lights went out to help her navigate? Or was she scared of the dark perhaps?

"Use this time to shake off those first-day inhibitions," I said and raised my eyebrows in a silent question at the porcupine and she immediately dropped her hands from my jacket. "and I'll be right back." I gave Ash one more look before hurrying up the stairs towards my office to fix our power problem.

I had just the solution.

I quickly started searching for the longest extension cord I could find, my efforts doubled when I heard an especially loud complaint that sounded an awful lot like Mike from downstairs.

I let out an "Aha!" when I finally found it minutes later and jogged to my window. I pushed it up and ducked my head outside to see how far down the closest ledge was. I stuck the tip of my tongue out in thought. Yeah, I could do it.

I hopped down to the ledge and shimmied my way over to the next one, careful as possible, considering I'm three stories up from the ground.

I jumped onto the ledge with the designed pillar and nearly felt my stomach heave when a piece of it gave way under my foot.

"Whoa!" I gasped, and watched the plaster and stone crumple down below while quickly pressing myself back against the pillar. This was a little too much like that scene with Doc Brown and the clock tower from that movie Back to the Future for my liking...

I took a breath and patted the building behind me with an apologetic smile. "Sorry, old girl. I'll fix that!"

I continued on my way to the building I was aiming for and peeked my tongue out again as I measured the distance I would have to jump across. My blue eyes jumped to and from the ledges and nodded to myself. I can do this.

Or not.

I jumped but missed the ledge by just inches, and gravity did it's job.

I'll admit, my scream could've been manlier on the way down.

Just as I thought I was going to be a fuzzy little pancake, my descent was abruptly halted, and I hung suspended in the air by the cable around my ankle. I glanced up and saw that the cord was stuck on the very place I almost fell moments ago, where there was a obvious chuck of stone missing from the ledge.

I grunted with effort as I tried to reach the cord wrapped around my foot and sighed in annoyance.

"Um, Mr. Moon?" A timid voice asked. I turned my head to look for the speaker and was greeted with a young female elephant.

My eyes widened as I examined her height, considering the length of her trunk...

"Hey, listen!"

She paused mid sentence and stared at me with startled eyes. Oh, was she already speaking? "Do you think maybe you could reach the ledge?" I asked with a sheepish smile.

"Th-that ledge?" she asked and I quickly nodded. I motioned for her to help me up and she gently scooped my smaller body up with her trunk and heaved me up to my destination. I landed a little wobbly on my feet, all the blood rushing back out of my head now that I was right side up.

"Whoa, that's a heck of a trunk you've got there!" I complimented before turning back to the task at hand. "Thanks a lot, kid!" I called down to her before jogging over to the buzzing letters of the neighboring business.

"Uh, Mr. Moon? M-My name is Meena, and-" The girl continued, but I could only make out the first part of her sentence with all the buzzing from the glowing letters and her quiet, shy voice.

"Just a moment, please!" I called down to her and found the plug I was looking for. I pulled the power from the letter 'O' and quickly began attaching the plug to my own. "Be right with ya," I continued distractedly.

Oh, come on!

The my plug was _just_ out of reach of the outlet I needed! I pulled and yanked on the cord, frowning in frustration. "Hmm." I grunted and pulled on the cord with all my might, until it finally gave away the few centimeters I needed and I was able to attach them.

There we go! Powers back on.

 **999**

Later that night, I sneaked over to visit Eddie at his parent's house. His family is pretty rich, but also strict, so they don't usually let Eddie have visitors over when it's late, but I really needed a break with my friend after the conversation with Judith.

I tugged off my suit jacket and got more comfortable while Eddie dried off from the pool and threw on a robe. The sheep then turned around and went to a mini fridge I didn't notice before and pulled out some sodas and tossed one to me. "Here, you wanna play some video games? The PlayStation is already up and running, I just paused my game to get my laps in before it got too much later."

I shrugged, I wasn't the best at video games, but it sounded less stressful than trying to come up thousands of dollars in a short time. "Sure, what are we playing?"

"Racing." Eddie answered and plopped down into his inflated chair.

"Oh..." Great, I suck even worse at racing games.

We started the game up in silence for the first few minutes, before I asked the question I had been pondering since following Eddie back into the pool house and seeing the living room it's been made into. "So, what, you live in the pool house now?"

Eddie popped a chip in his mouth and said, "Yeah, my folks want me to be more, you know, independent, I guess."

I leaned to the right with my controller and cringed when I still slammed into a wall. Eddie's car zoomed around me and took the lead. Along with half the other NPC racers.

He continued on as if he wasn't having to concentrate on his driving, like first place wasn't a big deal. Well, it probably wasn't if this is what he did everyday. "They even hooked me up with this life coach dude.

"Life coach?" I repeated and frown down at my chair. What was I sitting on?

"Yeah," he chuckled. "I guess he's gonna help me find my purpose in life. I thought I had one-" I reached behind me and pulled out a shoe and gave the oblivious Eddie a dry look before tossing it over my shoulder. "-but it turns out, it wasn't the right one or something. I don't know."

"Huh," I responded, once again trying to crawl my way back out of 6th place.

"Anyway, he's got me on this whole schedule thing." Eddie said and popped another chip in his mouth. "It's like, Mondays, take out the recycling; Tuesdays, mow the lawn; Wednesdays, go visit Nana-"

I blinked and completely gave up trying to concentrate on winning as I replayed that last one back in my head.

"Thursdays, clean the pool. It's like, don't we have people to do all of this stuff?"

"Whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa, whoa. Back up." I turned in my seat so I was facing the sheep. "Your nana is _still alive?"_

Eddie gave me a look and said, "Oh, yeah." And suddenly kicked over a surfboard that was leaning against the wall next to him. As it slid away, there it was, a picture of Nana Noodleman.

I couldn't help but lean away from the family photo with wide eyes, her glare so powerful I was almost positive she was alive in the picture.

"Wow." I couldn't help but say. She looked healthy for a sheep her age. Very lively. Then another thought came to mind. "And she's rich, right?"

"She's loaded." My friend confirmed around his loud, crunchy bites. "But trust me, you don't want to go near my nana." He chuckled out before returning to the race, snagging first place in the meantime.

He suddenly shuddered as if the cold hands of death had suddenly gripped his shoulders. "She's one mean sheep."

I barely heard him, my thoughts running wild with ideas and new hope. As I continued to stare at her photo, a smile grew on my face. Yes, if anyone was willing to loan me the money to save my theater, it was surely Nana Noodleman. She may be 'one mean sheep', but I was known for talking my way in and out of almost anything, surely the retired singer wouldn't be too hard to sway, especially if its about her favorite theater...

 **999**

The next day, I rubbed my still stinging cheek as I made my way to Ash's rehearsal room. I was two acts down, one 'maybe' with the timid Meena, and plain out rejected when I tried to talk to the Japanese kids. What the hell did I even end up saying to them, anyway?

All night, as planned out what I would say to sway Nana into sponsoring my singing contest, I couldn't help but think about Ash. Or more importantly, my feelings towards Ash. I was a grown man, I could recognize a crush when I had one. I've never had such a strong attraction to another species before, though. Sure, I've been attracted to other species before in college and when I was an exotic dancer, but never this... _intense..._

From the very first second I heard her voice I was hooked, I think. She was physically attractive too, sexy, even. I never thought I would have the urge, or even the thought, to run a hand through a porcupine's quills, but _hers_ looked so smooth, especially the few framing her face.

She was also a teenager. I wasn't sure how old she was, but I was hoping she was at least legal...I shook my head as if I could shake the very thought out of my head. She also already had a boyfriend her own age, and would _not_ appreciate an old man coming on to her or being creepy! I was probably over half her age for Pete's sake!

I hauled up the portable stereo to sit on my shoulder as I neared the porcupine's room, glad that I had forgone the jacket today and just settled with my white dress shirt. I had been doing a lot of manual labor to help out and direct today, and it felt good to be more relaxed.

I would only work with her to help her improve, to help her shine, and would _not_ let my personal feelings get in the way.

I. Will. Be. Professional!

I pushed open the door with my free hand and smiled big for the singer. "Hey, Ash! I've got something I want you to hear."

Ash paused at playing her red guitar and gave me a very small smile in return. "Hey, Moon." Her smile dropped and she gave me a cautious look. "What do you want me to hear?"

My smile widened and I waltzed over to where she was standing. "What's with that look?" I asked teasingly and set the big (to me) stereo down with little effort to the floor before turning back to the teen. I saw her looking at the stereo and back to me with curious eyes as she set her guitar on its stand.

"Well, I remember the... _outfits_ ," she practically hissed out that last word, "that you tried to get me to wear." She suddenly smirked and quirked a finely shaped eyebrow. "You know, for a koala, you're pretty strong. That stereo looks as big as you are, and probably weighs as much, too."

I paused in readjusting my rolled up sleeves and looked up to see her eyes raking over my form, her gaze pausing on my exposed forearms. My smile turned into a bit of a smirk against my will, my ego swelling. "Well, what can I say? I try to keep fit in my spare time."

I smiled and turned back around and pulled the CD I'd chosen out of my back pocket. Dammit, no personal feelings!

"Now, after going through the list of songs for you to sing, this is the one I think would be best." I popped in the disk and pressed play, and ' _Call Me Maybe_ ' started playing through the small mirrored room. It was such a catchy song, and I couldn't help but dance to the beat.

"I. Am. Not. Singing. This." Ash's voice lost the teasing tone the moment she heard the first couple of lyrics, and immediately went rebellious.

"What's not to like?" I asked, and turned back around to face her, still dancing. "You're a female, and you're a teenager. Right? What are you, like eighteen?" I couldn't help but add on that last question.

"Yeah, as of last month, but-"

I tried and failed to ignore the way my heart jumped in happiness at that. "Then what's wrong? This song was made for you!"

She gave me a deadpan stare before feigning shock. "Wow. It's like you can see into my tiny, teenage mind!"

"I know, right?" My smile widened and I pointed my index fingers at her. "You just gotta add some moves and a little bit of..." I stepped back a few paces and before my mind could catch up with my body, I was dancing and singing for her.

" _Hey, I just met you,"_ I sang as I leaned my torso forward, arms straight out and pointing at her with my hips still moving. I held my hands out in a 'well?' gesture before moving on to do a low spin.

" _And this is crazy!"_ I sang this verse while twirling my fingers by my temples to go with the lyrics before giving her a wide grin while I ran my tongue over my bottom lip and raised my eyebrows. She was watching me with wide eyes and a twitching grimace, almost like she was fighting a smile.

" _But here's my number,"_ I acted out writing my number out on my palm and then imitated that sassy head move teenage girls are known for before finishing with, " _So call me may-beh!_ " I flicked out my hand in a vague 'go on' gesture towards to gaping teen.

"Go for it!" I encouraged excitingly.

Ash immediately schooled her features to match my excitement. "Oh, you mean like this?"

" _Try to chase me,"_ She swept her hand out, imitating moves like I did moments before.

" _But here's my number,"_ She danced a couple steps closer to the stereo with her eyes closed and pretended to hold a fake phone up to her ear with rolling eyes.

" _So call me maybe."_ She raised her arms up above her head and swept them down slowly down her body and finished the chorus with a sassy hip cocked and her head thrown to the side, her quills faintly clacking from the force.

My cheeks hurt from how wide my grin got. Even when just _oozing_ with sarcasm, she was fantastic! And that gritty tone her voice gets sometimes just... _oh._ Goosebumps.

"There you go! You're a natural!" I said, meaning every word.

Ash looked back at me incredulously and cocked an eyebrow. "Are you-ugh!" She groaned and threw up her hands in frustration. "I wasn't being serious, Moon!"

I nodded and dropped my optimistic mask for a moment and gave her a serious look. "I know, you weren't being serious in that little performance, and you were still great! _That's_ why I want you here."

The porcupine looked taken aback by my sudden shift in personality, and her eyebrows knit together with an emotion I couldn't quite read. "Oh, um, thanks, Moon..." she trailed off uncertainly and dropped her eyes to stare at the two quills in her sweater. Another dark colored sweater over a gray long sleeved shirt and a plaid skirt with light blue ripped skinny jeans today. Did she wear anything else?

"I'm serious, Ash. Don't doubt yourself! You can do this." I insisted, feeling my heart twist at the sight of an insecure Ash before me.

"I _know_ I'm a good singer! And a good guitarist too! I just don't think I could perform a song that's so far out of my comfort zone, especially alone! Even Lance thinks-"

 _Lance._

"Lance doesn't kno- _I_ am a professional at recognizing talent, Ash." I stated firmly and placed my hands on her shoulders so that she was facing me, her wide blue eyes met my own. "If I say you can do it, and you _know_ that you can do it, then you will. The end." I ended my little pep talk with a smile, making sure to show my pearly whites.

Ash's eyes were swimming with awe and gratitude as they bounced from my lips to gaze. She gave me another small smile, and I felt the breath leave my lungs at the sight. It completely changed her face and made her look even more beautiful, a feat I didn't think possible.

"T-thanks, Mr. Moon. That..really means a lot." Her tone was bereft of any sarcasm maybe the second time I've spoken to her.

I nodded and reluctantly let go of her shoulders and brought my arms back down to my sides. "How about this," I glanced at my wrist and huffed out a quiet chuckle when I remembered that I had taken it off earlier. I instead pulled my phone out of my front pants' pocket and checked the time. Ah, it was almost noon already? "I'm going to go ahead and call for a break, and everyone can grab some lunch. Why don't you go over the song list again, and see if you like anything else on there if you _really_ don't want to sing this song. Okay?"

The girl sighed in defeat and nodded. "Alright, sure. I'll look it over."

I nodded in thanks and held a hand over her lower back as I walked with her.

Right as we entered the main hall outside the rehearsal area Johnny came barreling by us, nearly plowing Ash and I over. Without thinking, I had immediately swept a hand under the porcupine's mane of quills so that my arm was across her back and quickly swept her around me so that she wouldn't be jostled by the larger animal.

"Careful, Johhny!" I scolded, and let go of Ash's person. "What are you in such a rush for?"

"Oh, I'm so sorry Mr. Moon! I was, um, actually looking for you." The gorilla answered and shot an apologetic look at us.

"Well, what's up?" I asked and waved at the young rocker as I parted ways with her, and was happy to get a short wave back and another eye roll. When did I start finding her teenage angst and sarcasm so endearing?

"Yeah, well, that's the thing, I kinda hafta go...like right now, I have to go home early." Johnny called behind me as I made my way up the stairs. I stopped in my tracks at that and spun back around.

"Wait, what to you mean, you gotta leave _now?"_ I stammered out and looked down at him from the top of the stairs.

He rubbed the back of his head. "I know. I'm...I'm so sorry. It's just, I've got this family business thing."

I placed a hand on my hip and raised an eyebrow. "Do I need to start worrying about your commitment here, Johnny? Tell me no?" I asked and folded my hands together.

"No! Absolutely not. I promise it won't happen again." Johnny promised with wide, regretful eyes.

I sighed and decided that would have to do for now. The last thing I needed was another act to drop out. "It better not." I called over my shoulder as I continued back up the stairs.

"Thank you, Mr. Moon!"

 **999**

My tongue couldn't help but stick out a bit as I weaved my bike through traffic as I made my way to the late twenty-four hour fast food joint I liked to frequent. I didn't really feel like cooking tonight, and the food there was worth bike ride. It might have been less of a workout to just take a cab, but the cheaper the better right now.

I swerved to a stop at the bike racks and finished locking up my bike when my ear twitched at hearing some loud arguing coming from across the street. I couldn't help but look over to see what the commotion was about, curiosity winning over my current hunger.

My eyebrows flew up when suddenly the door to the apartment building flew open and two porcupines were practically thrown down the steps. ...Wait...

Was that... _Lance?_

I dropped all pretenses of not being curious at seeing Ash's boyfriend and another female porcupine being kicked out of a building and turned both of my large ears forward to listen with all of my ability.

"Hey, what did you expect? You're never around anymore!" Lance exclaimed annoyed while the girl next to him stood next to him awfully close. Then, none other than Ash came out onto the doorstep holding a guitar case, looking more emotional than I'd ever seen her.

"I did it for _us,_ Lance! YOU and ME!" She yelled, her beautiful voice cracking with emotion. I felt my heart sink with sadness. Surely he didn't...

Ash threw the guitar case down at Lance's feet and the force caused him to fall forward as it knocked his legs out from under him.

"Oh, sweetie, I'm sorry. But I think I left my sunglasses in there-" The other female porcupine didn't get a chance to finish as Ash then proceeded to slam the door in her face.

I stood still in shock at the sight before me. From what I've gathered it would seem that in the two days that Ash had been gone to rehearse at my theater, Lance had become lonely. He had actually had another girl over at their own house...

The sadness was still present in my gut, but it was quickly being overshadowed by a powerful anger. How... _stupid_ did you have to be to...to...actually _cheat_ on a young woman as wonderful like _Ash?!_

I glared at the dumbass as he scoffed and stood back up. "Come on, Becky. Let's get out of here." He took hold of her hand and proceeded to walk away from her, shooting one last scowl at the apartment building.

The other girl giggled, "I can see why you were tired of her, hon, she's kinda crazy."

Okay.

I quickly looked both ways before sprinting across the street to the apartment building. I hesitated for a few seconds, and tried to reason that Ash probably didn't want to see anyone right now, especially not an older koala that she didn't really know...

I turned around and was just about to walk back down the steps when a choked sob came from the other side of the door. Like a puppet being pulled by its strings, I whipped back around and gave the door a firm couple of knocks.

The sobs were abruptly cut off. Ash's smokey voice was thick with emotion as she weakly called out, "Go away."

I licked my lips and knocked again.

"Go _away,_ Lance!" she yelled louder, her voice stronger now with anger powering it.

"It's me, Ash." I called back, softly.

There was a pause, and the sound of something hard and hollow scraping and hitting the wood of the door. Was she leaning against it? "...Mr. Moon?" she asked.

"Yeah," I swallowed before raising my voice an octave. "Can you please open the door?"

She didn't respond for a few seconds, before finally saying, "I...want to be alone right now, Moon...I'll talk to you tomorrow."

My eyebrows furrowed and I sighed. I considered just doing as she wished, but once again my body made my decision for me. "Please open the door, Ash."

I heard a familiar annoyed sigh. "No, Moon, please go."

"Ash."

"Moon!"

 _"Ash..."_ I growled a bit, letting my voice lose the high, optimistic tone that she was familiar with.

"WHAT?!" She snarled and finally wrenched the door open, breathing heavily as she glared at me. I should feel ashamed for intentionally riling the heartbroken girl up, but I needed to speak to her face to face.

I gave her a gentle, searching look before saying, "I'm so sorry about Lance, Ash."

That seemed to knock the wind from her sails and she flinched back a bit. "W-what...?" she said so softly and broken that I immediately stepped into her personal space and pulled her into a hug. It wasn't that comfortable, with her standing stiff as a statue in shock from my bold move and the quills framing her face slightly jabbing me in the neck, but I held her regardless; in a way that she could break away if she wanted, but tight enough to let her know she was safe and secure in my arms.

"I'm so sorry, sweetheart," I whispered against her small, round ear. "He's an idiot, and you were too good for him anyway. _He doesn't deserve you."_

That shattered the dam holding back her tears, and she broke down in my embrace.

She brought her hands up to grip at the back of my white shirt and let out body wracking sobs. I gently walked her backwards so that we were inside her apartment and I kicked the door closed. This was a private, vulnerable moment for Ash, a young girl who was so strong...

I rubbed one of my hands soothingly across her back and angled my head a bit better so I wasn't getting pricked her smaller quills and my large, fluffy ear wasn't smothering her. She suddenly pressed closer until she had her face buried in the crook of my neck as she choked out, "I-I did _everything_ for h-him! *hic* I left _home_ for him, and he d-does this?! I've put up w-with _so much,_ I _loved_ him!" She cried, and I felt my fur get damp from her tears.

I squeezed her to me tighter and whispered, "I know, sweetheart, let it all out..."

She shook against me and let out a wail of anguish, and I had to scramble a bit to keep a hold of her as her legs suddenly gave out underneath her. I tried to keep her from falling to the ground, and my heart clenched at her pain.

Fuck it.

I pulled her towards me a bit more and slowly led us both to the floor and pulled her into my lap. She didn't even seem to notice, and her hands shifted from my back to grip the collar of my shirt and she buried her face into my chest, tears still pouring out with no sign of stopping. I let out a sad sigh at the broken girl collapsed onto my lap and carefully ran a hand over the top of her smooth quills and quickly brought the other one up to undo my red bow tie so my neck wasn't so constricted.

"It'll be okay, Ash. You'll see. It's hard now, but you'll come out of this stronger, and happier..." I consoled, my voice staying low and comforting. I don't know if she was even listening to me, but I continued to whisper little nonsensical things to her while she cried.

I don't know how long we sat there on the floor of her apartment, my back to the door and my legs sprawled out in front of me with the teen in my lap. I had stopped speaking, and was just content to run a hand over her quills and my other arm wrapped around the small of her back, my thumb rubbing small circles into the soft, fine fur that peeked out between her shirts and skirt. Her cries had faded into small hiccups and then into deep breathing and sniffles. I swallowed when she finally spoke.

"...How did you know?" She asked, her voice rough.

I didn't need her to clarify. "I was across the street when you threw them out. I took a guess to what happened from what I heard..."

"...Oh..."

Ash finally lifted her head up from my chest and blue met blue. I couldn't help but be affected by how close we were, and did everything in my power to keep eye contact with her, and not sneak a peek at her lips.

"Tha-" She broke off and cleared her throat before starting again. "Thanks, Moon. I...really."

I shook my head and gave her a small smile. "Please, just call me Buster when we're not at the theater. And it's no problem, Ash. You were hurt, and, well, I wasn't going to let you go through that alone."

The porcupine glanced away from me for a second before looking back. I've never felt such overwhelming relief when a small, wobbly smile took the place of her frown. Her painfully beautiful features changed again, and I felt an emotion so powerful that I absentmindedly brought a hand up to my chest to soothe the feeling. Ash's eyes followed the motion and then widened, staring horrified at my shirt.

"Oh, I'm so sorry! I got your shirt all wet! Shit," The girl hurriedly sat up and pinched a bit of the fabric of my shirt between her thumb and pointer finger and pulled it taunt, stretching out the front.

"Huh?" I said intelligibly, and looked down to see a dark, wet patch over my entire chest. I shrugged and looked back up at the embarrassed girl. All the heartache and hurt she's going through and she's worried that she cried on me? I bit my lip in order to stop a stupid smile from spreading across my face, but must have failed since she immediately zoned in on my mouth and then back up to me with shocked eyes. I couldn't help it, she was just so adorable! I let out a short chuckle and pulled the surprised porcupine back in for a hug.

She gave a muffled "Hey!" as her face was once again pressed into my neck and I laughingly said, "You are such a wonderful creature, sweetheart."

She froze in what I assumed was shock and I quickly went to assure her, "I mean, no, I'm not laughing at you, Ash. It's just, it's really no problem about the shirt, it'll dry pretty quickly. What matters is your feelings..." I trailed off and decided to just be blunt. "This won't heal overnight, Ash. It's different for everybody, so I can't say when it'll get better, but what I _do_ know after only meeting you a couple days ago, is that you are strong, talented, and so much more. I believe in you, I _believe_ that you will get through this stronger than ever."

I heard her take an abrupt breath and sniffed a bit before wrapping her arms around my waist and hugging me tight. I smiled and hugged her back, happy that I was managing to help her. "Thanks, Moon-ah!"

I playfully pinched her side and reminded her, "Buster, please."

She sat up so she was upright in my lap and gave me a huff and teasingly scowled down at me. "Okay, _Buster._ Jeez, didn't think I'd get, y'know, _punished,_ for getting your name wrong."

Oh Jesus. "Well, I thought you had a good memory. And, well..." My smile got a bit of an edge, and while my brain was screaming at me to shut up, my hand left her back and lightly pulled at the hem of her plaid skirt. "You _are_ wearing a skirt that's similar to a schoolgirl's. That's like you're just _asking_ to be punished."

I immediately bit down on my tongue before I could say anything else creepy and insensitive. For fuck's sake, she _just broke up with her cheating boyfriend!_ And here I was, saying things like that, with her a mess in my lap...

Oh.

 _Oh..._

My eyes widened slightly as I quickly took note of our positions. My gut immediately burned with desire, and never had I realized how much I wanted something until it was suddenly happening.

Yes, I was aware I had a crush on the young porcupine, but I didn't realize just how fucking _much_ I wanted and cared for her until she was sitting here with her thighs framing my own. Oh God, don't think about that...

I was thankfully torn out of those inappropriate thoughts when Ash let out a startled laugh. She shook her head, her quills clacking softly, and quickly covered her mouth when a giggle broke through. I blinked up at her as she tried to hide her laughter. My earlier embarrassment slowly faded away as I looked up at her and I gave her a grin.

"Yeah," she giggled, blue eyes shining with amusement. "Yeah, I guess you got me there." She suddenly let out a big yawn, and I glanced at my wristwatch. Oh, I had been here for a half hour.

"Maybe you should turn in for the night," I suggested with a kind smile. "You've had a long day."

She shook her head and sighed. "No, I don't want to go to bed yet. I still haven't eaten dinner." She suddenly glanced down at our positions, as if seeing for the first time, and a blush lit up her cocoa butter cheeks. She squeaked a bit, and quickly clambered up and off of my lap. "Sorry! Ah, sorry..."

"It's fine." I assured, and grimaced when I had to grip the doorknob to pull myself up. Damn legs were asleep.

"Are you okay?" Ash asked worriedly and held her hands out as if ready to catch me should I fall.

"Pshh," I waved her hands away. "Yeah, just have the tingles in my legs. I'll be fine." I gave her my usual happy smile, and the porcupine eyed me and slowly nodded.

I clapped my hands together. "Now, about dinner. I haven't eaten yet, either." I gave her a shrug. "I was actually going to go eat at the place across the street from here when all...that started. Would you like to join me for some dinner? We could whip up something here, or I could order carry out?" I asked tentatively.

She thought for a moment, and dropped her eyes to the ground. "I don't know what I have here that would be quick to eat. We- I mean, I have plenty of frozen food, some easy to make stuff like soup and mac n cheese...Everything else would take a while to make..." She trailed off and looked back up at me with shy eyes. "You really wouldn't mind us getting carry out?"

I rolled my eyes and gave her a teasing grin. "Oh course not, it's fine! I'll look up their menu so we can order, and I'll run over and grab it when it's ready, okay? It usually only take like ten to fifteen minutes, tops."

Ash held out her hands. "No no! I can go get it, really! It- you've done enough for me already, M-Buster." She quickly stuttered out and I blinked at her. I was kind of off balance with how different Ash was when her mask of indifference was gone. I still really liked her, but it was a little worrisome how insecure and unsure she was about things. She just _radiated_ self-confidence when she performed, so was this truly how she felt when she wasn't playing guitar or singing, or did it have to do with Lance?

I gave her another gentle smile and patted her arm. "It's fine Ash. I don't mind, really. Why don't we go sit and watch some TV or something while we wait for the food? Or we can keep talking..."

Ash chuckled and ran her hands over her face. "Yeah, okay. Yeah, TV sounds good. My voice kind of hurts from all the talking and crying. Anymore and a good night's sleep isn't going to help it before tomorrow morning."

I slapped a hand to my forehead in exasperation. "Right! Yeah, let's go sit. Don't strain yourself if you don't have to, okay?" I led her over to her sofa and took a quick glance around her apartment. It was certainly spacious, and there was two mic stands set up in the middle of the sitting room, connected to some amps.

The porcupine turned on her TV and pulled up the TV guide to look for something while I thumbed through my phone and ordered us some food, all the while shooting her concerned looks. She still looked miserable, but slowly, she was putting up her walls again. Her true emotions were getting harder to read, and I ran my tongue over the front of my teeth in thought. I might get one more thing across the street before I return.

We continued to sit there in comfortable silence when she finally stopped on a movie that was close to ending when I decided to head out and get our dinner. I stood up and met her gaze. My optimistic smile was met with a blank face. "Alright, I'm sure it's ready by now. Be right back, Ash."

She nodded and turned back to her flat screen. I let out a silent sigh and hurried to the the restaurant. While standing in line waiting to pay, I quickly looked over the large menu on the wall and smiled when I found what I was looking for. I knew just the thing to make Ash feel better.

I ran across the street with my to go bag and rang the doorbell. A few seconds later Ash opened the door for me and let me in with a small smile. "Welcome back."

I nodded but quickly pulled away when she reached for the bag. At my dodge, she gave me a confused look. I shrugged and gave her an innocent look while making sure the bag was behind my back. "I can set the table if you want to go sit."

She furrowed her brows a bit at that. "Oh. Um, I was just thinking we could eat in the living room. It doesn't matter to me-"

"Alright, go ahead and sit down in there then and I'll grab us some silverware and drinks!" I interjected happily and gently pushed her into the living room, wary of her sharp quills. I smiled reassuringly at her suspicious look and held back a laugh when she gave her signature eye roll and did as I said. I hurried to the kitchen and pulled my extra purchase out before searching for her dishes and silverware. I piled my vegan burger and fries onto my plate and scooped her salad into a bowl before looking for one more thing.

"You doing okay in there?" Ash called from the other room as I climbed up onto the counter to look into the top cupboards. Aha! So she _does_ own wine glass! I picked one of the two glasses up and paused when I saw two full wine bottles at the back of the cupboard. Ash was eighteen, right? Where did she get wine?

I hummed in thought and jumped back down with my prize in hand and went over to the table. "Yeah, I'm fine! What do you want to drink?" I called back as I stopped short of scooping the last item and eyed glass. There was a thin layer of dust layering the entire thing. "What do you want to drink?" I asked as I wiped the thin handle off on my suit pants and placed it between my teeth so that my hands were free.

"Just water's fine. There some in the fridge." I heard her say as I climbed up onto the counter again to reach the sink and rinsed the glass so it was clean.

"Sounds good." I answered and hopped back down to finish preparing our dinner. I left the now full wine glass on the table and pulled some water bottles out of the fridge and headed back into the living room with our food.

Ash raised an eyebrow as soon as she saw me. "What took you so long?"

I shrugged. "Oh, you know, just took a minute to find the plates." I fibbed and handed her the salad.

"Uh huh. Or a few." She said suspiciously. "You were totally snooping, weren't you?"

I placed a hand to my chest in fake shock. "What? I would never! Hey, what are you watching?"

She blinked at my off topic question and turned back to the TV. "Oh, I don't know, some old movie came on."

I took a seat a respectable distance away from the girl and grinned excitedly when I recognized the movie. "Oh, this is a great movie! You've never seen Back to the Future?"

"Nope, but I've heard of it."

"Oh, man, you're gonna love it! It's a pretty funny movie, and has a good plot. Also, the main character is a lot like you!"

Ash gave me a dry look. "Why, because he's a porcupine?"

I rolled my eyes. "No, he's a rocker! He's a teen who loves rock music and is still looking to be discovered for his talent."

"Oh." The female porcupine took a bite of her salad and looked back to the movie with feigned boredom, but I could see the interest sparkling in here eyes. I smiled to myself as I ate my own dinner.

Marty had just gone back into time when Ash finished her salad. I placed my plate down onto the table beside me and stood. "I'll be right back." I told her before she could ask. I hurried back to the kitchen and was grabbed the wine glass.

I held it behind my back as I walked back into the room, causing Ash to give me a wary look. I gave her a big smile. "I have a surprise for you."

Just as she opened her mouth to ask, I held out my surprise for her to see, causing her eyes to go wide. "The best thing to have for a sore throat and an aching heart is a hot fudge sundae." I smiled and held my free hand behind my back and offered the glass of ice cream out to her.

Her eyes darted from the dessert to my face before her eyes welled up with tears. My friendly smile slid off my face in fear. Shit, I didn't mean to make her feel worse!

"Ash?" I asked worriedly and set the glass down next to my plate and moved closer to her. "...I'm sorry, I...I just thought-"

She mumbled something so softly that I had to perk my ears forward. "I'm sorry, what?"

Ash took a deep breath before saying louder, "That's the nicest thing anyone's ever done for me..."

I had a moment to process that before she was standing and threw her arms around my neck to pull me in for another hug. My arms automatically mimicked her actions and wrapped around her waist. I hid a slight wince when my arm scraped across her quills.

"Thank you, Buster." Ash whispered against my neck and I closed my eyes.

"No problem, Ash." I whispered back and took in the scent of her. She smelled kind of like cocoa, just like the color of her fur, with just a hint of leather...

I pulled back from her hug and gave her a smile. "Your ice creams going to melt if you don't hurry and eat it." I picked up the glass again and held it out to her like before but upped the charm of my smile.

She let out a watery giggle and wiped the pad of her thumb under her eye to catch a stray tear before taking the glass and gave me the warmest look I've seen from her yet.

 **999**

I ended up staying for the whole movie. When one of the final scenes came on with Marty playing for the dance and doing his wild guitar stunts I teased Ash that she should do some of those moves in her performance for the contest.

The porcupine rolled her eyes and replied that the 'stupid call me song' wasn't really made for awesome guitar gestures.

I gave her my full attention when I heard that. "Wait, you're actually going to do that one?"

My question made her look at me with shocked eyes, as if she hadn't meant to say that. "Uh," she stuttered out and quickly turned her gaze back to the TV. "Well, I wasn't going to, but after going over the whole list again...that was the best option." she said with a casual shrug of her shoulder.

I grinned big at that before suddenly remembering the performance itself. I glanced over at the clock hanging on the wall and realized what time it was. We both needed to be up and early in the morning.

"Well, I'm going to head home." I announced and stood up from the comfy couch. Ash quickly stood up with me.

"Yeah," she said slowly, "We both have to get up early in the morning."

"Thanks for having me over." I thanked as she walked me over to the door.

I looked back to see her giving me a disbelieving look. "You-" she cut herself off with a chuckle and I raised an eyebrow in question. "Thank you, Buster. For everything."

She surprised me yet again by leaning in closer and wrapping me in a quick hug that I returned, happy to hold her one last time tonight. When she pulled away a few seconds later, she paused and quickly pecked me on the cheek before leaving my personal bubble altogether.

My brain kind of shut down for a second when I felt her lips against my fur and I blinked dumbly at her when she gave me an expectant look. "What?"

 _There_ was the eye roll I know and love. "I _said,_ I'll see you before rehearsal?"

I blinked again and tried to make my mouth work. "Oh, um, actually I have somewhere to be in the morning." I distractedly scratched at my clavicle and was surprised when my collar felt look and open. "Miss Crawly will let you guys in and get you situated, and I'll be back in the afternoon, maybe earlier."I stuttered as I glanced down and saw that my red bow tie was messily undone and just lying across one shoulder. When did that happen?

I brought up my other hand to tie the bow back into place at my neck as Ash said, "Oh...alright."

I have _literally_ been in much, much worse situations with my previous occupation and handled them without a hint outwards that I was embarrassed or bothered, why the hell was I getting so flustered from a harmless kiss on the cheek by a pretty girl?

She gave me a small smile and looked to be blushing slightly as I walked out and gave a final wave goodbye. "Good night!"

She nodded and quietly said, "Good night." before shutting the door closed.

The entire ride back home I came to a realization. Until Ash brought up rehearsal, I hadn't once thought about my theater or financial issues. Ever since I hit the rocky times, I was always thinking about ways to make more money for the theater or planning more shows. Everywhere I went, it was in the back of my mind, ready to spring out at a moment's notice. But for the first time, maybe years, I didn't think about it at all the entire time I was visiting Ash in her time of need. All my thoughts were revolving around her.

I didn't know how I felt about that.

 **999**

 **There's the first part. Sorry about any errors I missed, I don't have a beta. Let me know if you like it, if you don't wanna review but still like it, I'm still happy if you fav or follow it!**

 **Also, for those who are still waiting for me to update my other stories, I'm sorry if you're disappointed that you got this instead lol. I'm trying to update all of them at once, so I'm a manager of a business at my day job and am in a committed relationship so I have only so much free time.**

 **They're coming though!**

 **Peace.**


	2. Part 2

**Hey.**

 **So, barely even 24 hours after I posted this, somebody sent me a PM with nothing but a winky face and a link to a post on twitter (a tweet that was out waaayyyyy before I even saw the movie), and I swear to God, it's a tweet of a fan art of a male stripper Buster. A good one too! I'm still laughing and dying from it. If you want to see a sketch of a beefy Buster Moon in nothing but a thong and a bow tie, look up Buster Moon on twitter and it's one of the first things you see.**

 **Also, to the person who drew that, bless you.**

 **Also, thanks to LuSilveira for faving, following, and reviewing! Your BustAsh fic was the first thing I read after seeing the movie and I love you for it, best I've read on here! You may or may not have inspired me to even attempt a fic of them! You rock!**

 **Anyway, Ash is still sad and a little ooc, but that's just realistic after being dumped after a long term relationship. Especially like THAT. I miss the Ash we all know and love too, but I don't want to rush her through this too much, but honestly, if I had a man like Buster in my life caring for me, I might have gotten over some of my break ups quick too. *Shrugs***

 **I'm changing the timeline up a bit so I can add some more things into this relationship, not too much, well...you'll see.**

 **So, obviously, songs used in my story aren't mine, they're from the movie or artists that I'll name if I throw some in, like now. The song Buster sings in this chapter is 'Ladies of Tampa' by Dallas/Matthew from Magic Mike. I tweaked the town name of the song to fit with the setting of Sing.**

 **Enjoy.**

 **999**

The next morning found me sitting on a ledge, leaning against a brick wall and calling up Eddie.

The sheep answered after a couple of rings. "Ah, good morning, Buster."

"Hey, Eddie. How are ya?" I asked in a chipper tone.

"Good. How's the show going?"

"Ah, it's going great." I then turned my head to the right. "Hey, that's a sharp jacket you've got on today."

I heard him thank me as I pulled my phone away from my ear and hung up.

"Wait..." The sheep suddenly said, and stopped walking down the sidewalk to his Nana's. I smirked and looked to my right again as I tucked my phone into the pocket on the inside of my black suit jacket. Eddie let out a yelp of surprise when he met my gaze.

"What are you doing here?!"

"Eddie," I scolded teasingly and stood up onto the small ledge and grabbed a armful of roses from beside me. "you can't come visit your Nana without bringing her some flowers. Here!" I suddenly threw the makeshift bouquet of flowers into the startled man's arms and jumped up to ring the doorbell.

"What? No! Buster, no! Don't go in there!" Eddie whispered frantically as he ran after me, but I was already squeezing through the door, not waiting for it to fully open and came to a stop in the middle of the wide viewing area.

I ignored the Eddie and the doorman as I caught sight of who I was here for. "Ah, Nana!" I exclaimed happily to the sheep walking down the stairs.

Well, I say walking, but for the retired diva, she was as elegant and queenly as the first time I saw her on stage and the few social outings I've seen her attend. Ah, that judging glare was the same, too.

"Just look at you, dear!" I called up to her with open arms. "Wow! You don't look a day over ninety!"

I heard Eddie face palm behind me. "Oh my god."

I quickly turned and took the bouquet from his arms and approached the old sheep. "Buster Moon!" I introduced myself with a big smile. "We met at Eddie's graduation." I ran up the last few steps to meet her and held up the roses for her.

She flat out ignored me and kept descending the stairs. "Oh, lucky me. A visit from my useless grandson and his _ghastly_ little theater friend." She said dryly and walked right by Eddie as well.

I shot my friend a grin and said, "Look at that, she remembers me!" I think turned back to follow after Nana. "Now, Nana, how would you like to be the sponsor for a _very_ prestigious prize?" I asked as I quickly passed her and stood in her path offering the flowers again.

She stopped and cringed back from them. "Not for that singing contest I saw on the news..."

I nodded. "That's the one!"

She then gave me a knowing, slightly condescending smile. "Oh, I see. You don't have the money, do you?"

My eyes shifted to the floor at that. "Well, we don't _quite_ have it all locked in j-"

"Well, you won't get a cent out of me!" She quickly cut me off and walked around me.

"Nana, please, just listen to me for one second, okay?" I pleaded, my optimistic smile still in place but my eyes tightened a bit in worry.

"No, absolutely not."

"Don't listen to him, Nana!" Eddie said from her other side and cowered when her gaze shifted to him.

"I'm not listening to either of you!" She then roughly handed her grandson her teacup and saucer. "Lapsang souchong, no sugar, and be quick about it."

My eyebrows furrowed and my smile turned into a determined smirk. I could do this.

"Uh, Nana," I quickly put my normal grin back on my face and ran after her, throwing the bouquet back into Eddie's arms as I passed him.

"...I-I don't know how to make tea..." He weakly called after us.

 **999**

I let out a shout of excitement as I ran towards where the everyone was told to gathered. I asked Miss Crawly to tell everyone to take a break and meet me backstage for an important announcement. I slowed to a fast walk just before I rounded the corner and saw everyone was conversing with each other.

Well, everyone but Ash. She had her arms crossed over her breasts and was just looking at the ground in silence. I could still see that she was devastated about Lance. I gave her a worried glance before addressing the group.

"Alright now, listen up!" I raised my hands and waited for the other animals to cease talking. "Friday, we are going to have a full preview of the show," I walked through the group and motioned for them to follow me, shooting Ash another quick glance as I passed her. "and our audience will be none other than Miss Nana Noodleman!"

"Nana Noodleman? She's still _alive?"_ Mike chuckled in disbelief.

" _Oh_ yes, and believe me, she's got some pretty high standards, all right?" I told the mouse as I straightened my blue bow tie. "So, today, we're going to have a full dress rehearsal, and I want to see you light up the stage, folks!"

I stopped Meena and Miss Crawly and asked them to follow me as I took the rolled up blueprint from my jacket pocket and showed them my renovation plans for tonight.

"Two minutes, everybody!" I warned them all and paused as I caught sight of Ash in the bright sparkly dress I had suggested she wear on the first day. She was just standing by the wall out of the way of everyone, and staring down at the screen of her phone with a sad expression.

"Hey, Ash?" I asked her loud enough for her to hear but low enough so nobody could eavesdrop. "Are you okay to perform today?" She quickly looked up at me like I had sneaked up on her, and tried to give me a smile. My worry increased tenfold and my own smile slipped a bit when hers wobbled dangerously.

"Yeah, Moon. I'm fine. I got this." She said confidently, but gripped a handful of her dress.

I looked from her hands to her face and gave her a kind smile and lay a hand on her bare, upper arm. "Alright, but, if you need anything, or want more time to prepare, just let me know, okay?"

The porcupine nodded and dropped her gaze to the ground again. "Oh, and Ash," I quickly caught her chin with my finger and gently lifted her face up again. "Love the dress. You look great."

I smiled and tilted my head a bit at her wide eyes before continuing on my way to my desk in front of the stage.

 **999**

"Bravo, Mike! Nana is going to love that!" I called up to the mouse and rolled the sleeve of my white dress shirt up to my elbows.

"Oh, you're...you're too kind, Mr. Moon." Mike thanked in his suave tone and headed off stage.

"And I myself am loving the new suit, sir." I wrote down some notes before asking for my next one. "Okay, can we see Ash next, please? Ash, let's get you out here!"

I put on a smile as she slowly walked out in her cute dress, but I still couldn't help but worry about her. She glanced over her shoulder and Meena took it as her cue to start her music.

" _I threw a wish in the well, don't ask me I'll never tell,"_ Ash started her song off in a low voice, and I looked away from her momentarily to make a quick note about her costume. She looked great in it, but I knew she wasn't entirely comfortable in it. Maybe an open jacket to throw over her shoulders? I'll have to ask her later...

I was immediately wrenched from my thoughts when I heard a sound similar to last night.

 _"I looked to you as it fell, and now you're i-in, my way,"_ Ash's voice was breaking in the middle of her verse, and I quickly looked up to see her expression crumbling before she shook her head and set her brows into a stubborn grimace.

 _"Your stare was holding, ripped jeans, skin was showing,"_ I dropped my pen onto the table and my mouth dropped as I watched the young girl fight back sobs. I felt frozen in my seat, like I knew I had to stop her before she got worse, but at the same time, I was in awe at how beautiful her singing was, even now. My ears were perked up high on my head, and I stared unblinkingly at the porcupine as her voice drifted into my ears like smoke in the air.

I felt guilt weight me down as she continued, _"Hot night, wind was blowing, where do you think you're going baby..."_

She couldn't fight the tears anymore, and I realized with a start what probably set her off. It was this _song_ that _I_ picked because I was a goddamn _idiot_ and I talked her into wearing a dress she _clearly_ didn't care for and I was just _sitting_ here enjoying her singing even when it was barely even _singing_ anymore and was just _her_ and God, could I be more of an asshole?

I was a stupid asshole for making Ash sing a song about young love shortly after being dumped by her cheating boyfriend.

I stood up in my seat as she cried out the last couple of lyrics. " _I just met you...this is crazy..."_ Ash was practically hugging the microphone to her for support as she sobbed and wiped an arm across her face to stop the tears. _"Here's my number, so call me maybe..."_

"Whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa, okay, enough of that!" I looked from Ash, who was bent over the mic, body shaking with sobs to the elephant backstage. "Cut it, cut it. Cut. It!"

Meena quickly turned the music off and only the porcupines cries filled the room. My ears dropped in sadness as I quickly jumped down from my seat and walked towards the stage.

"Okay, hey, Ash, um..." God, this was all my fault.

I stopped at the edge of the stage and looked up at her. I could see every painful detail of her anguish from my angle, and it just made me more panicked. "Hey, come on, Ash..." I pleaded with her and tried to catch her eye. No luck, those beautiful blues were clenched shut. "What was it? Was it...the song? Was it the dress?"

She suddenly threw her head to the side to hide her face from me and accidentally caused a few of her quills to fly out from her head. They struck me in several places on my face, and one on my arm.

"Ow." I grit my teeth and carefully reached up to grip one that got awfully close to my eye.

Ash jerked her head back to look at me with shocked eyes (and accidentally flinging even more quills out behind her) and I saw the guilt and horror fill her eyes instantly. She let out a loud cry and dashed away from me towards the others.

"Wait! Ash-" In my haste to reach out for her, I forgot that I was holding a quill and ripped it out of the tender flesh near my eye. "-ow." Okay, they stung more coming out then in.

I watched helplessly as Ash ran past a concerned Rosita, and pondered whether I should follow her or not. She would probably be better off without me there to make things worse again...

No, I'll wait until everybody is finished performing before I try to talk to her. That way she can just be herself and open up to me like before, when it was just us.

Hopefully.

 **999**

"Ash, could I please speak to you in my office for a moment?" I called out to her as she was walking back towards the rehearsal rooms with everyone else. Well, everybody minus Johnny and Mike. Johnny left rather abruptly, and Mike scoffed when I asked if he was staying for a little more preparation. To be fair, he really didn't need it.

The young girl stopped and shot me a quick glance, but didn't look me in the eye. Rosita whispered something to her as she passed and patted her shoulder comfortably. I struggled to keep my happy mask in place as she trudged towards me like she was on death row, and still didn't meet my gaze.

The trip up to my office was silent, and I had to sneak a glance behind me more than once to make sure she was still following me. Her sea blue eyes were still downcast, and she was still holding handfuls of her dress with clenched fingers. I pushed open my door for her and swept a hand out, gesturing for her to go in first.

"Go ahead and have a seat over on the couch." I said as I closed the door behind me and went over to join her. I paused as I watched her sit on the end of the couch that didn't have a clutter of scripts and books. After a moment of indecisiveness, I decided to sit with her on the couch and quickly scooped up an armful of the clutter and tossed it onto the matching chair next to us. I saw Ash shoot me a nervous look as I plopped down onto the cushion and turned to face her.

She met my gaze for a second before dropping it somewhere below my neck. "Look, Moon-"

"Buster." I interrupted and flashed an encouraging smile at her hesitant expression. "I told you it's okay to call me by my first name, remember?"

The porcupine sighed and finally met my gaze. Her eyes looked regretful, painful, and above all, scared. Why was she scared? Seeing that wiped my optimistic mask right off my face.

"I'm sorry."

"I'm so sorry!"

We both said it at the same time and I blinked at her in confusion. "What?" I asked.

"I said, I'm so sorry, Mo-Buster..." Ash repeated and her eyes started to well up once again, but no tears fell. "I- I just _lost_ it on stage in front of _everyone_ over s-something as stupid and simple as a song that I don't even really _like_ and you've b-been so _nice and understanding_ about my stupid, _stupid teenage drama_ that you've probably seen a million times, and then I go and _hurt you and I-"_

"Ash!" I quickly cut her off and took hold of her arms, scooting closer so that our knees were touching. "Hey," Ash's eyes were very wide and she wasn't taking deep enough breaths and she quickly held a hand to her chest. "Ash, are you okay?" I asked worriedly.

"No, I don't-I can't breathe!" She wheezed out, and one of her hands grabbed my arm. I moved a hand from her arm to her neck and felt for her pulse. Suddenly I knew what was happening, and I tried to calm my own heart rate.

"Ash, hey, look at me." I said calmly, and shifted my hand on her neck so that I could gently raise her face up so it was level with mine. Her terrified eyes locked on mine with a startling intensity. "You're having a panic attack, sweetheart."

Comprehension and surprise swirled in her eyes before the overbearing panic was back. "I-but I never...I don't _get-"_

"I know, and it's scary, but I'll help you through it, okay? Ash, you need to breathe." I reached for the hand on her chest and slowly guided it towards my own, laying the palm flat and holding it between my chest and my own hand. "Okay, I need you to breathe like me, alright? In, and out, slowly..."

Ash's eyes jumped from her trapped hand and my calm gaze and jerkily nodded her head, her quills clacking from the sharp motion. "Okay, I'll...try..."

"Good girl..." I muttered and took a deep breath in, before slowly letting it out. I was happy to see Ash do the same. "That's right, just like that...in, and out..." I breathed with her again and rewarded her with a stroke of my thumb across the back of her hand.

After about two minutes of this, Ash's breathing finally got back to normal. I eyed her carefully and smiled when her eyes were clear again. "There you go, it's okay." I whispered and squeezed the hand that was on my chest.

I was rewarded with a soft, throaty giggle that was purely _Ash._ I felt my smile grow bigger at the wonderful sound. "Hey, will you listen to what I have to say for a minute?" I asked and pulled her hand away from my chest to rest in mine, and lay them on my knee. No need for her to feel how fast she makes my heart beat.

"Yeah, of course." She nodded and looked at our joined hands for a moment before looking back up at me, but didn't comment on them.

"Okay," I let out a breath before continuing. "Ash, I am so sorry about what I put you through earlier."

"What are you talking about?" She asked, eyeing me like I had a second head.

I returned the look. "What do you mean? What happened up there, on that stage, was _entirely_ my fault."

The porcupine gave me a dubious look. "Look, Buster, I know that the pills help, but you have to consider the afteref-"

I let out a huff of fond exasperation and rolled my eyes. "I'm not on _drugs,_ Ash."

"Are you sure?" She scoffed. "Because I don't think we remember the same scenario here!"

I let go of her hand and cradled her face in my hands as I looked at her seriously. My actions immediately made her go quiet. "What I _remember,_ Ash, is making you go up on stage to sing a song I _knew_ you weren't comfortable with, wearing a dress you've always eyed with disgust, _right after you broke up with your boyfriend."_

Silence reigned in my office as my statement hung in the air like a living presence. We just stared at each other and I removed my hands from her person. "And if that wasn't bad enough...I...I just _sat_ there while you broke down in front of everyone, and could only think of how beautiful your voice was, even when it was breaking with emotion." I had to force that last truth out and abruptly dropped my gaze from hers once it was. I closed my eyes and ran my hands down my face. There, she needed to know the truth, that I was a messed up man, thinking she was beautiful even when she was torn open and raw from sadness. She didn't need anymore men in her life who didn't deserve to even be in her _presence-_

My thoughts were interrupted when small hands hesitantly touched my wrists. I peeked out from between my fingers and saw Ash gazing at me like she's never seen anything like me. Her eyes were bright and animated, similar to how they were yesterday when I sang and danced for her during rehearsal. But, as I looked closer, not even that, but... _more._ I may have never seen these emotions on her face before, it made my heart beat at an alarming pace.

She gripped my wrists in her lithe hands and pulled them away from my face. My eyes danced across her features. Have our faces always been this close?

"That," she cleared her throat and tried again, "Do you...really think my voice is beautiful?...Even when I sounded like crap earlier?"

I frowned at her choice of words. "I think you always sound beautiful, Ash. That's what I've been trying to tell you since I met you. You were _born_ to sing."

Ash sucked in a quick breath, stared at me with wide eyes, then _smiled_.

I stared.

I was like a man dying of thirst and Ash held the sweetest ambrosia. This was a smile that I hadn't seen before. It was big, delighted, slightly crooked, the corner of her lips upturned on one side like she couldn't decide if she wanted to smirk or smile. On most people it would probably look awkward, but on her it was perfect. Her straight, pearly white teeth peeked out from her lips and stood out from her cocoa butter colored fur.

"Buster," Ash said in a breathy tone, and I felt a little light headed. "That is the nicest fucking thing anyone has _ever_ said to me." Without waiting to finish her sentence, she launched towards me and threw her arms around my neck like she did last night.

My arms came up around her as well, my hands hesitantly resting on her lower back. "I seem to be doing that a lot lately," I chuckled nervously, my body temperature rising at the feel of her perky breasts pressing up against my chest.

The porcupine mumbled something into the fur of my neck that even _my_ ears couldn't catch before she pulled her head away and looked me in the eye again. "Thank you, Buster. Really."

I nodded and gave her a small smirk. "Thank _you,_ Ash."

At her questioning look I just shook my head. I wasn't about to just _say aloud_ that I was thankful that she forgave, or maybe didn't even _care,_ that I was a perverted old man that thought she was attractive when she cried, or that I was thankful that I got to hold her again, even for a few moments. I figured last night was the last, and only time.

"Now," I let out a breath of all the negative emotions clouding my mind and gave her my usual smile. "If you want to go home early, you can, you know."

Ash's eyebrows went up at that. "What? Go home?"

I nodded. "Yeah, if you want. You've had it rough, and if you just want to take a day, I would understand..."

She let out a giggle and looked at me with a look similar to last night when she kissed my cheek, and brought a hand up to play with the end of the quills framing her face. My eyes flickered to the sight briefly. "That's sweet, Buster. I...might...as bad as that sounds. I _should_ just suck it up and stay here to rehearse for the show on Friday-"

"Please, you'll be fine!" I interjected with a wide grin. "You're going to blow Nana away! Or, if you want, just take a day at home and write your own song as a backup in case you decide you really don't want to sing my choice."

I leaned back a bit at the unexpected focus she suddenly gave me. "You want me to try writing my own song?" Ash asked in shocked happiness.

"Uh, well, yeah!" I patted her arm in encouragement. "I know you could do it if you really wanted to! And if you need help, give me a call and I can give you some pointers! I've written a few songs in my lifetime, you know."

"Wha-Really? _You've_ written songs before?" The porcupine asked, intrigued.

Damn. Maybe shouldn't of said that. "Yeah..." I confirmed hesitantly. "I used to sing on street corners back when I was a teenager for some extra cash. I wasn't in a band or anything, I only wrote a few of my own and played my guitar."

"No way! You can play?" She asked impressed. "That's pretty cool, Buster. Can you still play?"

"Oh, I don't know..." I laughed sheepishly and ran a hand through the styled fur on top of my head. "I haven't picked up my guitar in years..." I admitted and my traitorous eyes moved over to my long time guitar that was laying forgotten on a table behind Ash. She turned in her seat and followed my gaze.

"Ok, you _have_ to play something for me!" She stated and stood from her seat.

"Wait, what?" I stuttered and jumped up from the couch. "Wait, Ash, I haven't played in like, five or six years!" My pleas fell on deaf ears as she walked over and picked up the guitar. There was physical evidence to my statement in the form of at least three think layers of dust on the instrument.

Ash dusted the guitar off as best as she could as she came back over to me and gave me a bright, hopeful smile. "Come on, Buster! Just give me a taste of your musical talent! I know you can sing and dance, let me hear you play too!"

Oh, if only she knew just how well I could dance. A small, long buried part of me kind of wanted to see the delicious expressions that she would give if I _really_ showed her how well I could dance. I buried that part of me with the sick part that compared Ash's voice breaking in heartbreak to what her voice might sound like if it broke in pleasure.

"Well, I..." My mouth just kind of hung open and my words stopped flowing as I took in the pleading look Ash was giving me. I stared at her for a few seconds before dropping my shoulders in defeat. Fuck, who ever said puppy eyes were the most dangerous tactic? Porcupine eyes broke me down in seconds.

"Alright." I sighed and practically fell back down onto the couch as Ash gave a quiet, little cheer. As nervous as I was, I couldn't help but smile at the sight it. She was just so adorable!

"So, what do you want me to play?" I asked as she handed me my guitar.

Ash sat back down as well and faced me. "Well, how about one of your songs? I would love to hear what the great Buster Moon wrote."

I raised an eyebrow and smiled at her, flattered. "Oh. would you?" I asked and began to tune my guitar. "Alright, I guess I could play one of the last songs I wrote before I got this theatre." I said nonchalantly, but inwardly I was scrambling to remember even _some_ of the notes to songs. The only one I could think of was the last song I played at my old club right before I did my last dance. It was short, and if Ash asked questions about the meaning behind the lyrics, I could always go with half truths.

I cleared my throat and sat up a bit straighter and strummed a few notes. The girl next to me looked at me eagerly. Okay, I can do this. "This was a short song I sang my last night performing at the place I used to own before I got this." I explained and gestured at the theatre around us.

She nodded and gave me a playful smirk. "Okay, koala. Let's see what you can do."

I paused just as I was about to sing and studied her expression for a moment. Her eyes were flashing daringly at me, and the old Buster started to rear up again at the sight of her giving _me_ that look. I let my optimistic mask fall away for what felt like the hundredth time with her and matched her smirk with one of my own. Instead of answering verbally, I started to strum, slow and steady.

I held her gaze as I played for a few seconds and tilted my head a bit when I finally began to sang, my voice lower, deeper, how it usually was when I used to sing back then.

 _"Ladies of Cala~."_ I sang, and was satisfied to see Ash's lidded eyes fly open at hearing my voice when I was seriously singing. _"The first time that you ever walked into my life,"_ I kept my eyes on the porcupine as my fingers swept across the strings, and flashed a little too much teeth as I continued. _"And oh~, so many ways you all became my wife, it's true, I'm talking to you,"_ My voice dropped as low as it could go comfortably, and the rare, gravelly tone made an appearance as I sang out last few lyrics of the verse. My eyes remained on Ash still, and her eyes were sweeping across my person, but came to a stop on my lips at hearing that. I felt my lips tingle from the intensity of her stare and smirked. _"Ladies of Cala."_

I took in a breath and began playing the final half of the song. _"Even though we gotta go, there's one thing you gotta know,"_ I paused for a moment before strumming faster notes and tapped my foot for an extra beat. _"Ain't no matter how much you love me for show, ooh~, I'll always love you more."_

I let myself get caught up in my song for a bit and closed my eyes and replaced my smirk for caring and charming smile at the feelings the song carried into it's making. I was happy to sell the club and replace it's constant in my life for this theare, but I was still appreciative to all the women that frequented over the years to see me and the others dance and strip for them. I may not have turned out the self-confident, charismatic host that I turned out to be.

 _"Oh~, I'll always love you more than you know, you got me tied to a chain, I'm just a slave to your soul and there ain't nothin' I can do about, that's for sure!"_ My notes got faster and more powerful until I abruptly cut off and opened my eyes again to see Ash, sexy, wonderful Ash staring at me. I smiled at her as I finished my song. " _Ladies of Cala~."_

I smiled at the stunned porcupine. "How was that?" I asked brightly, still somewhat nervous from her silence.

"Wow," Ash finally whispered. "That was amazing, Buster!" she said in a louder voice, her eyes still shining in awe.

"Yeah?" I said with a chuckle and ran a hand through the fur on top of my head while I set my guitar down on the table next to us. She nodded and glanced down to my lap for a moment and her eyes widened. My stomach made a swooping sensation and I quickly followed her gaze. Shit, did I have a-

"Oh, you got dust on your nice suit!" Before I could even correct her on my suit being _nice,_ her hands were on my thighs, wiping the dust away. I froze at the feeling and just stared down at the sight in disbelief.

Alright, she's just being nice, no need to freak out. As long as her hands don't get too high up on my-!

"Hey! Ahem, hey Ash, it's fine! Really, I'm used to getting dirty in this place." I tried to placate the girl as I quickly grabbed her hands that were now on the very top of my thighs, way too close to my crotch for comfort.

She rolled her eyes and raised an eyebrow. "Okay...if you say so. I really like that suit, by the way."

I blinked at the sudden compliment. "You do?" I asked somewhat skeptically.

"Yeah," She nodded, and pulled one of her hands from mine and rested it on my knee. "I like your blue suit and red bow tie too, but I like how you look in this one the best. The black is a good contrast for your fur, and your bow tie goes really well with your eyes."

I hummed an affirmative as my gaze bounced from her alluring, lidded eyes and her bewitching smile to the hand that had left my other hand to come up and caress my bow tie as she spoke. I swallowed and eyed her carefully. Was Ash... _flirting..._ with _me?_

"Oh, well, thank you sweetheart." I said with an easy smile, and tried reason that the girl was being _nice,_ and my hormones were making me delusional.

She suddenly rolled her eyes and pulled her hand away from my neck. I tilted my head in confusion. "What?"

"That nickname," She huffed. "Why do you call me that? The last thing I am is _sweet."_ She scoffed and put on a sour look. I grinned and raised an eyebrow at the facade. I could tell now that it really _was_ just a facade, and after getting to know the real Ash, she wasn't the bored, rebellious teenager that she pretended to be when I first met her.

Well, okay, she is still kind of rebellious, but I see now that most of that was imprinted from Lance. "You can't fool me, Ash. You are one of the sweetest girls I know, _sweetheart."_ I said cheekily.

Ash let out a scoff and gave me a dubious smile. "Yeah, sure. I'm so sweet I'll just rot your teeth, Buster."

There was a pause as my mind immediately went into the gutter at her choice of words. My cheeky smile turned into a smirk. "Oh?" I drawled, and without fucking thinking, blurted, "Just what were you planning on putting in my mouth to rot my teeth, Ash?"

The girl's mouth dropped open in shock, her pink tongue clearly visible. I tried not to cringe at how creepy that probably sounded. "Buster!" She cried out in shock, her eyes wide.

"What?" I asked innocently, but inwardly I was on my knees begging for her forgiveness. I can't believe I said something like that to a teenager. A legal teenager, but a teenager all the same that wanted to hear those comments from _other_ teenagers.

Ash let out a startled laugh. "I can't believe you said that!" She exclaimed and gave my shoulder a playful push.

I let out a discreet sigh of relief and smiled at hearing her laughing. "Well, how am I supposed to know if you're just going to start shoving candy into my mouth or something? I _know_ you have a thing for sweets, I saw the way you attacked that plate of donuts Miss Crawly put out yesterday morning." I teased, and my smile turned into a smirk. "Or...were you thinking of something else?"

"Oh my God," She stated in a tone of disbelief, and pushed my shoulder again. "Okay, _first of all,_ I was still trying to wake up, and I needed the sugar! _Second of all,_ there is _no way_ you were thinking of candy when you said that!" She accused, her eyes dancing with amusement and something else.

"Why, Ash!" I exclaimed and slapped a hand to my chest in surprise. "I never thought you would have such a dirty mind!"

" _Me?!_ Oh, that is _so_ it!" She said while laughing and suddenly pounced. This time, when she pushed my shoulders for a third time, she followed with the motion and pinned me to the couch. My head was bent slightly as it rested on the arm of the couch and I looked at the girl who was now leaning over me, her eyes gleaming in victory.

"You are unbelievable," Ash said, her voice quieter now that we were in closer proximity. I gave her a small smile. "So I've been told." I said, my volume matching hers. I couldn't believe what was happening. Ash was leaning over me while she pinned me down, and was smiling softly down at me with lidded eyes. Even if she's comfortable enough around me to flirt, that doesn't mean she's as attracted to me as I am to her. I wasn't going to do anything that would make it seem like a come on, not when she just broke up with Lance.

A young man who was nothing like me.

I cleared my throat and slid my optimistic smile back into place. She blinked at the change and knit her brows together slightly. "Okay, I'm sorry about the creepy comment. Will you please let me up now?" I asked, hopeful. I was hiding it well, but I was _not okay_ with this close proximity. My brain was turning to goo again, and I always did stupid or risky things around her when that happened.

"Hmm..." Ash eyed me, considering my request. "That depends," she said slyly.

I raised my eyebrows in curiosity. "On?"

"On whether or not you're going to keep calling me sweetheart." She said dryly.

Oh. "Well...I don't really know if I can stop now. It's kind of stuck with you now and I stand by what I said about it being perfectly fitting!"

"You're really stubborn, you know that?" Ash sounded both irritated and impressed.

"Says the girl pinning me to my couch." I retorted.

She slid her hands from my shoulders and rested them on my firm chest instead, leaving a burning trail all the way. I sucked in a quick gasp at the unexpected action. My heart skipped a beat in my chest. Her satisfied smirk told me that she probably felt it.

"I think...that maybe we can negotiate." She said in a way that made my fur stand on end a bit.

My smile dropped a bit as I eyed her warily. "Okay...what do you want?"

Her smirk widened. "If you're going to keep calling me that _completely_ untrue nickname," I rolled my eyes at that. "then I get to come up with something for _you."_

Oh. That wasn't so bad. "Well, if we're going to be friends, then it would only make sense for you to have a nickname for me, too." I conceded.

Ash tilted her head a bit. "We're friends?"

"Well, yeah...I thought we crossed that threshold after yesterday and again today..." I said uncertainly. "But only if you want to be." I quickly added on.

I was relieved and overjoyed to see another of her bright smiles. "Yeah, I'd love to be friends, Buster." Suddenly she leaned up a bit and sat up straight as she looked down at me. Wait, when did she get in my lap?!

"Alright, _friend,_ let's see here..." She trailed off and tapped a finger to her lips in thought. "Before I starting throwing some suggestions out there, can I ask a quick question?"

"Sure." I said and tried to ignore everything that existed below her neck. It wasn't as bad last night when she sat in my lap since she was wearing multiple layers of clothing and we were still saturated in a depressing aura, but now, with her legs caging mine once again, she was only wearing that sparkling dress. Thank God she was sitting on my thighs and not a few inches upwards...

"So, is Buster your real name? No offense, but Buster Moon sounds like a stage name."

"Ah, yes, Buster Moon is my real name. Well, it is until tomorrow since I'll be legally changing it since you obviously hate it." I teased.

The porcupine lightly slapped a hand on my chest in retaliation. "I do not hate it! I think it's a really unique name! I was just curious, is all."

"Alright, alright. So, let me hear these nicknames you got for me." I said and folded my hands behind my head so I was more comfortable. I perked my ears up and raised my eyebrows encouragingly.

She playfully rolled her eyes and nodded. "How about...Busty?"

" _Busty?"_ I asked incredulously. "That's way too close to my real name, and doesn't really fit me."

"Okay, fair enough. Moony...?"

"Nope, that's worse than Busty! Also, my grandpa was nicknamed Moonie already, that would just be weird." This time I rolled my eyes. "Are you sure you like me enough to be my friend? These names would suggest otherwise."

Ash huffed in exasperation. "You're just being picky."

I gave her a dry look. "Ha, says _she._ Try to think of something that doesn't have to do with my name and something about my looks or personality. Except for fluffy!" I quickly added and saw her face fall in disappointment.

"Alright," She sighed and looked over me critically again. "How's...Stud?"

I gave her a deadpan stare and glanced down at my body pointedly. "Come on, Ash. Talk about untrue."

She shook her head at me in disbelief. "Are you serious? Sure, you're fluffy and little, hell, you're a koala! Just like I'm short and pointy. But this," she paused and caressed my chest firmly, causing my heart to jump again. "and this," she continued down to my stomach and ran her hands across the muscles there before sliding back up to my chest. " _this_ is studly! Seriously, you are _ripped_ for a koala!"

"Ah, geez, Ash, you're going to make me blush." I said and felt my face start to heat up in embarrassment and arousal. "That compliment definitely confirms what I said earlier. You are the sweetest girl I've ever met. And that's competing with Meena!"

Ash gave a short chuckle. "Yeah, that girl is too sweet for her own good..." Her eyes suddenly widened and I could almost see the lightbulb above her head. "That's it!"

I blinked in confusion. "What's it?"

"I thought of the perfect nickname for you! It's so perfect that you don't even get a say in the matter!" She said happily.

"Wha-I don't get a say?"

"Nope! If I don't get a say in what my nickname is, then you don't either." Ash smirked.

I floundered for a moment but found that I couldn't really argue with that logic. "Alright," I sighed. "So what is my official nickname, Sweetheart?"

The porcupine suddenly leaned down so that our faces were only inches apart. I was suddenly finding it hard to breathe, seeing her blue eyes staring into mine.

"Sugar."

The random word pulled me out of my trance. "Pardon?"

"Sugar. That's your new nickname. It's perfect!" Ash said with a grin.

"Sugar?" I repeated, still not sure if I was hearing her right.

She nodded. "Yep. Because _you,_ Buster Moon, are the sweetest man _I've_ ever met."

Oh.

My heart exploded with activity in my chest and mouth went dry. The emotion that was clawing at me right now was similar to what I felt last night when I was comforting Ash at her apartment, but more intense. "I like it." I whispered, and gave her a soft, appreciative smile, and her glittering eyes glanced down at m-

Suddenly, there was loud beep that cut through the atmosphere of the office, and Ash and I both jumped.

 _"Mr. Moon, as soon as you're done talking to Ash, Meena and I would like to go over the renovation plans with you again."_ Miss Crawly's voice creaked through the speaker of my office phone.

 _MissCrawlyTheShowRehearsal!_ My stomach filled with dread at hearing the old lizard's voice. It brought me back out of the private little bubble that I've been in ever since I entered my office with Ash. While we _were_ alone here in the room, there were still people in the building, a staircase away from walking in on a _very_ scandalous scene...

My eyes jumped to my office door in panic. The blinds were shut over the windows, but the window on the door was not. Anyone tall enough could walk by and easily see into the room and see our positions on the couch and get the wrong idea. Or the right idea? No! The wrong idea!

Now feeling like _I_ was the one about to have a panic attack, I looked back to the girl on my lap and quickly patted her thighs. Ash must have noticed the anxiety in my eyes because she immediately understood my message and got up. As soon as she was off of me, I jumped up from the couch and ran over to my desk to answer Crawly. A peek out of the corner of my eye told me that she was absent from her own desk, which meant she was using the phone from downstairs backstage, thank goodness. Crawly may not see too well anymore, but she wasn't _blind,_ and I didn't want to take any chances. All the same, the quicker I answered, the less of a chance of the old woman deciding to just come up here.

I leaped onto some books stacked on the ground in front of my desk and used them as a step up to lift myself onto it and stretched forward to press the button. "Yes! Sounds good, thank you Miss Crawly. Ash and I will be finished shortly." Movement danced just outside my vision and I turned to see that Ash had followed me across the room and was now looking over all the various paintings and posters framing my wall.

I kept my eyes on her as she made her way towards the small loft I had set up by the windows. " _Okay, Mr. Moon. Take your time."_

I slid off my desk and joined Ash by the ladder I had set up near my 'bedroom'. She glanced at me before going back to examining the loft. I in turn examined her. Was that a blush under that fine fur?

"So, what's with the bed?" She asked and nodded up to the loft, as if I wouldn't know what she was referring to. "You work a lot of nights here or something?"

"Yep. Every night, actually."

She turned towards me again and looked taken aback by how close I was. Oh, did I step closer to her when I was looking at her blush? "O-oh. Um," Her eyes flicked down before locking onto my own again. "You sleep here every night?"

I nodded and tried to fight the sudden pull to lean towards her. "Yeah, I live here. I made the loft myself."

Ash blinked in surprise. "Really? Why?"

I shrugged. "It's cheap. Besides, I renovated the break room downstairs into a kitchen, so this place is like my own little house."

The porcupine let out a disbelieving chuckle and shook her head. "You're just a little handyman, huh?"

"I suppose so." I said with a small smirk and flexed my arm in a comical way to show off my 'guns'. I was rewarded with a giggle.

"So...what renovations are you doing tonight with Crawly and Meena?" She asked curiously.

"Oh, that." I considered just telling her it was a surprise, which, really, it _was._ But...this was Ash..."Well, I promised to show Nana a theatre that's been made into a more glorious and wonderful place then she last remembers-"

So you lied to her?" Ash interjected teasingly.

"Eh, not really..." I said with a lopsided smile. "It really _will_ be by the time I'm done with it tonight!"

She raised an eyebrow at my enthusiastic proclamation. "Yeah? So what are you gonna do?"

I gave her an excited grin. "I...am going to build the very first stage lit entirely by _squid power."_

"Squid power?" She asked in amazement.

"Yep! Just think of it," I said and held my hands out in front of me, gesturing to an imaginary view of what was yet to be. "The whole stage glowing with neon lights, behind and below you, as you sing for the audience, squids dancing along with you as you captivate your audience with your voice..." I barely noticed that I was speaking lower as I went on, my thoughts running wild with ideas for the rocker's performance when the tank was finished.

"Oh..." I stopped thinking about the future and brought myself back to the present. I focused back on Ash to see her looking at me in admiration and awe. "That sounds amazing, Buster." Then she looked slightly worried for some reason. "But you're not going to do all that by yourself, are you?"

I raised a brow at that. "Well, not entirely. I need a larger animal to help me with a lot of the preparation and some of the heavier manual labor, which is why Meena will be a big help."

"Wait, so you're not going to hire a crew or anything?" She asked incredulously. "Just you and Meena?!"

Well, can't really _afford_ to hire any help. I'm still working on getting money to pay _you._ "Well, yeah. All I really need is Meena. I mean, sure, more hands would help a lot, but I'm working with what I got."

I watched Ash's eyes cycle through many different emotions as she gazed at me, but only recognized a few. Disbelief, admiration again, and then finally, determination. "Okay then, _Sugar."_ She purred out with a teasing smirk, and I felt a shiver race down my spine hearing that. Fuck, that was a mistake, letting her call me that...I was never going to be able to function like a normal animal around her again.

"What time are you guys starting your renovations later?" She continued on, unaware of my reaction.

I tilted my head once I registered her question. "We're starting tonight after dark, why?"

"Well, I-wait, why are you starting after dark? I figured you would start after we all left for the day...didn't you need to hurry before the show Friday?"

My eyes dropped to the side nervously. "Well, I need to... _acquire_...a LOT of water for the tank, and I kind of can't do that until we're under the cover of night..."

"Oh. My. God." Ash stated and grinned at me deviously. "Buster, are you planning on _breaking the law?"_

I brought a hand up to tug at my bow tie nervously. "Whaaaat?" Yeah, that was believable. Damn, I can't even lie well around this girl. How did I manage to sing earlier?

"You are!" Ash laughed excitingly. "I can't believe a guy like you is planning out a future life of crime!"

"Yeah yeah, laugh it up. I need _a lot of water,_ and the best place to get that is...well, not too far from here."

The girl paused at that, and I could practically see the gears turning in her head as she pieced together what I was referring to. "Whoa, Buster." Her eyes widened when she finally got it. "Your going to steal water from the water tower?!"

"Just a little bit," I placated with a smile. "There's plenty in there!"

"Okay, so how on earth did you talk _Meena_ into this?!"

"Oh, that?" I said with a dismissive wave. "I'll take care of that, later."

Ash rolled her eyes and let out an explosive sigh. "Right. Now I know for _sure_ that I am going with you guys."

My eyebrows flew up at that. "What? No, Sweetheart, you don't have to help."

"Of course I do, _Sugar._ If I don't come with you two softies, you'll get caught for sure." She stated as if it was a fact.

I scoffed. "Please, we'll be fine! I already feel guilty for having to bring one teenager along, a teenager who can be tried as an adult, mind you, now you want to be an accomplice too?"

"I'm going. You'll need help transferring the water back here, and I can help pitch in a bit with building the tank too, if you want."

"Ash, come on."

The porcupine crossed her arms under her bust and gave me a no-nonsense look. "Buster."

"Ash! I don't know what the hell I'd do if we got caught and you got caught up in this!" I burst out, throwing my hands up in exasperation.

She blinked in surprise at that, before her hard expression softened. "Buster, please let me come with you. If I don't, I'll make myself sick with worry...Please don't tell me I can't..."

"Alright." I could smell her unique scent again as she stepped closer to me, and that soft, open expression on her face made it so I couldn't say no even if I wanted to, which I didn't, really.

"Great!" Ash was suddenly smiling again, flashing her perfect white teeth. "Could I please see your phone for a sec?"

"Why?" I asked, already digging it out of my front pocket and holding it out to her. She took it and started going through it. "Ash?"

"I don't have your number, so I'm programming mine in here so you can call or text me when you're ready for me to come over for our 'heist'." She informed me with a little giggle before handing it back.

"Oh." Well, I was meaning to ask for her number anyway, since the one I called the other day was Lance's anyway. "Well, thanks, I'll uh, be sure to do that. We'll probably head out around eight, do you want to come over a little bit before that since you live in the opposite direction?"

She nodded. "Yeah, I'll probably head home now and work on that song for the rest of the afternoon until then. Is it okay if I text you for advice now and again if I feel stuck?"

"Of course you can!" I said enthusiastically. "I'm going to go over some things with the two ladies waiting for me downstairs, then I'll be helping everybody else with some things they need to work on. They probably won't much help though, so go ahead and talk to me as much as you want." I really needed to get it together, but the thought of Ash choosing to talk to me all day had a big smile on my face.

"Alright, Sugar. Will do." Her eyes were warm as she leaned in and gave me another hug, one that I instantly returned. I was getting better at avoiding her quills.

"I'll walk you out, Sweetheart." I murmured into her ear, and smiled into the silky fur of her neck when I felt her shiver.

She let out a small chuckle. "You can walk me out after I change back into my clothes, there's no way I'm going outside in this dress."

I laughed with her as I walked with her towards her rehearsal room to get her things. Yeah, I saw that coming a mile away.

 **999**

 **So...not a lot got done in this chapter. It's kind of shorter than I wanted, but it would have been like 20,000 words if I kept going. This was the best stopping point, but yay, more Buster x Ash (Bustash?) moments! As for the song, I researched a bit, and I'm pretty sure this movie takes place in the state of Calatonia, or, California. The city looks like LA, so that's where they are now.**

 **Like I said when I first posted, this story is already done, but there's lots of mistakes and spelling errors and plot holes and etc that I'm editing while I break it down into chapters. Remember, this was just a warm up project while I wrote my other crack fics lol.**

 **I'm still trying not to rush this relationship, but I know how fast love works when you meet your soulmate. It's crazy powerful, guys.**

 **Again, this is for fun, so if you don't like how I'm doing things, sorry, I guess...**

 **Oh, and the nicknames were picked out the moment this fic was first thought of. Sweetheart and Sugar are too cute _not_ to throw together.**

 **See you next chappie, hope you like it.**


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